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PC PARTY BLUEPRINT - 5/10
Strong Labrador
Labradorians are understandably proud of the matchless beauty, the vast economic opportunities and the rich cultural heritage of Labrador. Citizens throughout Labrador look to the future with tremendous optimism and a strong desire to play a lead role in shaping Labrador's future. Our government is determined to ensure Labradorians have a strong voice and a meaningful role in all decisions about Labrador's future. This is particularly true for Labrador's Aboriginal peoples, for whom the land and its prospects hold special significance, both historically and constitutionally. Labradorians of all backgrounds have worked hard to nurture a spirit of cooperation and to build bridges uniting communities across the immense spaces of the Big Land. Labradorians have long aspired to take a place of prominence and priority from a province-wide perspective. The day for which Labradorians have long worked has now arrived. Our government unveiled and implemented the comprehensive Northern Strategic Plan for Labrador, a top-priority provincial initiative to work collaboratively with Labradorians to advance the dream of a new future of promise for all of Labrador - from the east to the west, from the north to the south. This is Labrador's time to shine, to flourish and to reap the benefits of growth as our province moves forward - united in vision - into a brand new era of promise, prosperity and self-reliance.
We have already made tremendous investments in Labrador to demonstrate our unwavering determination to ensure Labrador achieves its full promise. We have invested in Trans-Labrador Highway construction, the Red Bay-Lodge Bay depot, Labrador Marine Service improvements including ferry dock upgrades, Straits ferry service extension, the 5 Wing Goose Bay business / marketing plan, new health care facilities, kidney dialysis services, new education facilities including the College of the North Atlantic, new social work positions, additional policing services, a new Supreme Court building, improved justice services, and many, many other initiatives. We will continue to build on these initiatives with major investments in the years ahead.
A Progressive Conservative government in its second term will:
- follow through in implementing the five-year, $250-million Northern Strategic Plan for Labrador [link], including many initiatives specified here
- provide an energy rebate to address one of the most pressing issues for rural isolated communities in Labrador, reducing the cost of basic electricity consumption needs of Labrador rural isolated residential customers to a level on par with the Labrador Interconnected Rates
- review Labrador isolated commercial customer electricity rates, with a view to introducing a comparable rebate when the Lower Churchill project is sanctioned for development
- continue to demand that the Government of Canada follow through on its commitment to establish a Rapid Reaction Force and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Squadron at 5 Wing Goose Bay, to continue to market 5 Wing for foreign flight training, to ensure 5 Wing is an operational requirement of the Department of National Defence, and to identify and secure other opportunities for military and non-military use of the base, building on 5 Wing's strengths
- increase the airlift subsidy
- continue to implement the Northern Agrifoods Development Strategy
- implement the Strategic Plan to Develop Labrador Secondary Manufacturing and Value-Added Wood Products Industry [link]
- work with Labradorians to achieve increased benefits from resource developments associated with mining operations in Labrador West and at Voisey's Bay and hydroelectricity development on the Lower Churchill River
- foster mineral exploration and mining development in northern Labrador
- work with the project developers and Aboriginal communities to accelerate the development of underground mining at the Voisey's Bay site
- provide flexibility with the ferry service in the Labrador Straits and consider extending the season as ice conditions permit
- complete Phase III of the Trans-Labrador Highway
- demand that the Government of Canada work with the province in completing the hard surfacing of Phase I of the Trans-Labrador Highway; and secure funding to hard surface the remainder of the Trans-Labrador Highway
- work with the Government of Canada to ensure the proper maintenance of the Trans-Labrador Highway portion of the national highway system
- present to the federal government options for a new paved airstrip for Nain
- present to the federal government options for paved airstrip improvements for Port Hope Simpson regional airport
- continue discussions on the concept and feasibility, including engineering and environmental-related work, of a fibre optic link throughout Labrador
- provide an annual operational grant to the new Mealy Mountain Auditorium
- proceed with the Hopedale rink project with a provincial contribution of $300,000
- continue to advance work to achieve a land claims settlement with the Innu Nation
- continue to encourage the federal government to make a final decision on the Labrador Métis Nation land claim; until then, remain committed to work with the Labrador Métis Nation to access federal programs and services
- work with partners, Aboriginal governments and organizations to enhance K-12 initiatives to prepare Aboriginal young people in Labrador for post-secondary education
- complete the new College of the North Atlantic campus at Labrador West
- support a new satellite kidney dialysis unit in Happy Valley-Goose Bay for dialysis patients
- complete a new health centre in Labrador West
- proceed with the development of a new long-term care facility in Happy Valley-Goose Bay
- provide picture archiving and communications systems for the Labrador Health Centre and Captain William Jackman Memorial Hospital
- strengthen the Tele-Health network and video conferencing capacity in Labrador, to improve access to address chronic disease management in Labrador
- develop a program to address the issue of inadequate access to dental services in northern Labrador
- enhance social work staffing to address the needs of children and families, and persons with mental health and addictions issues
- provide cultural awareness training for prosecutors, educators and professionals who will work in Labrador to ensure they understand and appreciate the cultural uniqueness of the Innu and Inuit peoples
- expand family justice services in Labrador and to provide family court services in coastal communities to address needs in the region, particularly coastal and remote communities
- continue to improve access to interpretation services in the justice system through the establishment of an Aboriginal interpretation project including the creation of a justice liaison position
- increase funding to the Labrador Travel Subsidy program, including School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador funding
- increase funding for strategic development of the tourism product in Labrador through Destination Labrador in tandem with a campaign to promote the region's splendours, natural environment and rich cultures to provincial, national and international markets
- in consultation with the Nunatsiavut government, work to establish an appropriate memorial monument at Hebron
- meet with Combined Councils of Labrador Executive once a year to review resolutions that pertain to the provincial government
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