Bill No. 212 - Public Utilities Act (amended) - 2nd Reading

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : I'd like to say a few words to this bill. Like my colleagues who have spoken, it is more than clear that Nova Scotians can't afford to pay the amount requested in the general rate application from Nova Scotia Power. To that end, we are of course, happy that some relief will be given.

I would be remiss if I didn't say - as long as we're bragging about our bills - that we introduced a bill on performance-based regulation. I want to be really clear that this path is the only one that will lead us to a power scheme that actually works for Nova Scotians.

We've been saying for over a year now that we need power that is clean, we need power that is affordable, and we need power that is reliable. I was glad to hear the minister use those same words today, but the reality is that we don't have a regulatory system that can deliver that to us.

As a short-term solution, this is certainly better than nothing. Certainly, it does address some of the issues that were raised by many members of this House and of the public around the profit that was represented in that general rate application and the rates that were simply unaffordable for so many. But it doesn't actually address the root of how we got here.

I want to point people to an editorial that was published in allNovaScotia - and I will table this, I just have to get it - that asserted that this is the end of independent regulation in Nova Scotia because when the Liberals wanted to do this, they capped the rates before the regulatory process began - also not ideal, but it didn't interfere with an independent process.

Not surprising, given what I think will become a theme as we go through these second readings in the government's legislative agenda, this is about wresting control of decision-making from an independent body and vesting it in the hands of the minister. Sometimes that leads to good decisions, and sometimes that leads to bad decisions.

I think it's very important that our caucus believes that we still ought to have an independent regulatory body that can make decisions in the best interests of Nova Scotians, and where we come in as legislators is that we create the mechanism that the regulator considers. That's why our legislative agenda has really focused on creating a regulatory system that works for the people of this province.

I think that, in fact, it would do many of the things that this bill is doing, but in a more sustainable way, in a way that preserves the independence of the regulatory body and that keeps important things like the essential service of power provision out of political hands and in an independent expert body. We have that body right now, but they don't have the tools they need to regulate our power system in the way that we need it to be regulated.

The last point I'll make is that one of the main things we need is to ensure that lower-income Nova Scotians can keep heat and power in their homes. To that end, we have been pushing for a long time for a universal service plan so there is the ability - and again, this is a regulatory issue - for the NSUARB to distinguish between rate classes, or within a rate class, so that some customers could pay a different amount than others.

We do this - there are means-tested programs. This government has a number of means-tested programs that they are applying right now. We also think that the NSUARB should be providing that.

This bill protects ratepayers, it ensures that people will have a little bit of an easier time paying for power, but it doesn't address the root of the issue. My sincere hope is that it will buy the government and the minister time to do the important regulatory reform work that is required.