Government of Newfoundland News

Advanced Education and Skills

The Honourable Kevin O’Brien, Minister Responsible for the Status of Persons with Disabilities, will address the Provincial Advisory Council for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities meeting tomorrow (Friday, September 26) at Hotel Gander. Members of the media are invited to attend his opening remarks at 10:45 a.m.

Service NL

The Honourable David Brazil, Minister of Service NL, will address members of the Newfoundland and Labrador Fish Harvesting Safety Association tomorrow (Friday, September 26). The event begins at 1:30 p.m. at the Johnson Geo Centre. Minister Brazil will speak at approximately 2:00 p.m.

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs

The Honourable Dan Crummell, Minister Responsible for Fire and Emergency Services-Newfoundland and Labrador, today announced the establishment of fees and fee regulations in the latest step towards the implementation of province-wide Basic 911.

Executive Council
Health and Community Services

A new treatment centre for youth with complex mental health needs was officially opened today by Paul Davis, Premier Designate of Newfoundland and Labrador and MHA for the District of Topsail.

Tourism, Culture and Recreation: The Rooms Corporation

An internationally significant fossil, discovered recently on the Bonavista Peninsula, Newfoundland and Labrador, is now being housed at The Rooms for conservation, safe keeping, future research and public viewing. Haootia Quadriformis, believed to be the earliest evidence of muscular tissue found on record, dates back 560 million years and impacts the current understanding of the origin of animals.

Fisheries and Aquaculture

Shell-Ex, a Twillingate-based company focused on creating value from discarded shrimp shells, will enhance its equipment with support from the Provincial Government. The Honourable Keith Hutchings, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, announced $81,600 today through the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program to help the company purchase and install a screw press that will remove water and protein from shrimp shells.

Executive Council
Tourism, Culture and Recreation

The Provincial Government has allocated more than $3.5 million to assist the Marble Mountain Development Corporation with the replacement of the Governor’s Express lift. The chairlift was damaged when a lightning strike caused a fire in the lift shack at the top of the ski hill on August 8.

Tourism, Culture and Recreation

The Honourable Tony Cornect, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, will be in Steady Brook tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24) for an announcement regarding Marble Mountain. Minister Cornect will be joined by the Honourable Vaughn Granter, Minister of Environment and Conservation, and MHA for Humber West.

Executive Council

Paul Davis, Premier Designate of Newfoundland and Labrador, on behalf of the Honourable Tom Marshall, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, will address the Business Excellence Awards Gala of the Placentia Area Chamber of Commerce tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24). The event will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Star of the Sea Hall in Placentia.

Service NL

The Honourable David Brazil, Minister of Service NL, will address the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of the Deaf Annual General Meeting taking place at the Independent Living Resource Centre, 4 Escasoni Place, St. John’s, tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24) at 7:00 p.m.

Environment and Conservation

The Honourable Vaughn Granter, Minister of Environment and Conservation, will attend a tree planting ceremony tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24) to commemorate National Tree Day. The event will take place at 11:30 a.m. at Margaret Bowater Park, Corner Brook.

Justice

The Honourable Darin King, Minister of Justice (Acting), today announced the most recent appointments to Queen’s Counsel by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Executive Council

Paul Davis, Premier Designate of Newfoundland and Labrador, on behalf of the Honourable Tom Marshall, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, will officially open the new youth treatment centre in Paradise tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24). The ceremony begins at 4:00 p.m. at the centre located at 7 Mallow Drive in Paradise.

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs

The Provincial Government is seeking input on a proposed amendment to the St. John’s Urban Region Regional Plan (SJURRP) which would replace the current regional plan map to reflect municipal plans that are currently in use throughout the region. The 15 municipalities in the region have been invited to participate in the review of the proposed change, and other individuals and interest groups are encouraged to provide written submissions.

Executive Council

The Provincial Government will hold the eighth of nine public sessions taking place across the province for the Open Government Initiative tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24). The session will take place in St. John’s at 7:00 p.m. at the Capital Hotel, 208 Kenmount Road.

Education

The Honourable Darin King, Minister of Education, says major progress has been made on several initiatives designed to strengthen language and literacy development at the K-12 level since last year’s release of Learning for a Lifetime – A Literacy Plan for Kindergarten to Secondary.

Executive Council

The Honourable Sandy Collins, Minister Responsible for the Office of Public Engagement, today acknowledged September 22–28 as Right to Know Week in Newfoundland and Labrador. Right to Know Week, celebrated internationally, is designed to raise awareness about people’s right to access government information while promoting freedom of information as essential to both democracy and good governance.

Executive Council

The Honourable Sandy Collins, Minster Responsible for the Office of Public Engagement, will speak at the YWCA St. John’s annual general meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, September 23). The event will take place at 10:00 a.m. at Government House in St. John’s on Military Road.

Tourism, Culture and Recreation

The Writers’ Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador has received $80,000 in operational support through the Provincial Government’s Cultural Economic Development Program. The alliance is a not-for-profit organization established in 1987 to contribute to a supportive environment for writing in the province.

Municipal and Intergovernmental Affairs

Based on the most recent forecast from Environment Canada, Fire and Emergency Services-Newfoundland and Labrador (FES-NL) advises residents in various regions of the province of the high potential for very heavy rain over the next six to 18 hours. Forecast models are indicating over 100 mm of rain may fall in a short period of time that may create localized flooding and poor driving conditions. The areas forecast to experience the most significant rain are the south, south west and west coasts. Residents in other areas of the province will also see rain throughout the day and at times this rain will be heavy.