Affordability crisis in Nova Scotia - Emergency Debate

CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : I'm pleased to rise and say a few words about this debate topic brought by my colleague, the Leader of the Official Opposition.

I believe earlier today in Question Period, the Premier called the Legislature a distraction. Today, just this once, where we find ourselves in an emergency session - a matter of overriding public interest to make a change that does not require our presence here - I agree with him. This is a distraction. It's a distraction from what? It's a distraction from the real emergencies, the real challenges that are facing people across this province on which there is actually no debate.

This government has acknowledged that we have a health care crisis, and it needs to be fixed. We all know, regardless of what we have to say about it, that we are in an unsustainable inflationary environment that is deeply hurting people in this province.

I would like to remind the government that this is the People's House. This is where we come to bring the people into the conversation. This conversation becomes easily abstracted. It is very easy for us to talk about - as other speakers before me have said - billions of dollars, and this or that program that was rolled out at some time. But the reality is there is no debate that people in this province need help. That is why we are here. We are here in the People's House to bring the people's voices into this Chamber.

The Premier used the term "compassionate government." The Premier has used that term a few times. I hope that the Premier might take the time to reflect on the fact that a compassionate government would act with compassion. Compassionate action is required right now. If you don't want to take our word for it, many speakers before me have said in this Chamber that every other province in this country has taken a compassionate move. This government in the last couple of months since gas prices have skyrocketed, since groceries have skyrocketed, in an environment of 9.3 per cent inflation, has done nothing to directly address the need that people have. That is not compassion.

Just to bring some people into this Chamber who were so recently right outside, ECEs are a great example. Early child care educators in this province do not make a living wage. We have been hearing stories for the last month about how they choose not to eat three meals a day, how they look forward to retiring in poverty. These are the people who make it possible for people like me to be standing here in this Chamber. It is shameful. This is action that could be taken now. We could move toward a living wage. If this government wants systemic long-term actions, there's an action.

People across this province, particularly outside of HRM, are telling us that they can't afford to fill their gas tank to get to work. They can't get to work because they can't afford to get to work. People need help, so the question is, who is this government helping financially? Who is this government helping? Well, as has been mentioned, some very wealthy developers have received tens of millions of dollars to bulldoze a wetland in my constituency, and to provide some housing at 80 per cent of market rate. I will take this opportunity to say, as I have many times before, that is not affordable. That is not affordable housing, and yet they get $22 million of government funding. For what? To build a project they were already going to build that is not going to alleviate the housing pressures we have for the people who need it most.

Today, we also heard that two new Crown corporations will be headed by - in the Premier's word - his "friends," who will no doubt earn six-figure salaries. So that's help for the Premier's friends - but they probably don't need it. As many have pointed out, the cost of living increases, 9.3 per cent inflation this month, are impacting people across the province in their capacity to live their everyday lives.

I am taking the opportunity of this debate to state the obvious because it needs stating. The emergency is not to quash a piece of legislation that we never should have been here for in the first place. The emergency is that people can't feed their children, they can't get to work, they can't pay for rent, and they can't pay for medication. That is the emergency.

The good news is that this government can act quickly. They have acted quickly. We've seen it. The raise for CCAs, which the minister speaks about herself so glowingly, that she personally gave to every CCA in this province, was welcome and long overdue, but we need to look at the context of that raise. We need to know that right now, the environmental workers in long-term care homes across this province - the people who empty the garbage, who need to be there to make sure that these facilities stay open - are in bargaining, and conciliation has broken off. You know how much they make, average, an hour? Fifteen dollars. They make $15 an hour. We are breaking off bargaining in long-term care facilities because this government doesn't want to pay people more than $15 an hour. They don't want to pay them a living wage in an environment of 9.3 per cent inflation. Those people aren't being helped.

Yes, there are jobs. We are hearing this from the government. There are jobs. We are in an environment where there are a lot of jobs. A very tried and true Progressive Conservative talking point: get people back to work. Doing what? Do you want to empty bedpans or empty garbage or clean rooms in a hot, long-term care facility with no air conditioning for $15 an hour when you could do anything else? Probably not. Do we expect anybody else to want to do that? Probably not. Why? Because we have to pay them what they are worth. That's a good investment from government, but we are not seeing it.

So many people can't pay the bills. The government says they are helping, but we want the government to help these people. We want the government to help these people directly like every other province in the country has. Our recommendation is direct support. We came out of COVID with a budget surplus. I was the finance critic when there was a massive deficit projected that did not come to pass. We had a surplus.

There is a windfall on gas tax. We disagree that gas tax itself should be waived, because that tax is all over the place. We don't know what will happen with the price of gasoline. We need to transition away from fossil fuels, but at this moment in time the government is getting a windfall. When gas costs over $1.80, that's more revenue that the government is receiving from people who can't afford to fill their gas tanks. Let's use that revenue now to help those people get by. That's sustainability.

This question of sustainability - the government came out of COVID with a surplus. They were elected into a surplus. What a lucky opportunity. I say luck. A lot of that money came from the federal government. A lot of that had to do with the uncertain accounting around COVID. They were expecting much worse and they didn't get it. So what are they going to do with it?

Yes, we have seen some programs, but people need help right now. This is why we are here. We are here because this is the People's House.

We are here to ensure that people get the help they need and to talk about the real emergencies - whether people can afford the necessities of life, whether Nova Scotians can access health care, whether we are addressing the unfolding environmental crisis as we sit in this 30-degree Chamber in the middle of Summer - with the urgency that it requires.

The Premier says this place is a distraction. If we can distract this government from helping their friends, into taking action, that's fine with me.