Public Spending - QP
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Yesterday, representatives from the Department of Finance shed some light on how this government makes its funding decisions outside of the budget process. We heard that Cabinet decisions rely on verbal advice, not documentation, and that people can come into a room, discuss an opportunity, make representations verbally to Cabinet, and then, if you're lucky, get a cheque.
This was all in response to a scathing report that found that many of these kinds of funding arrangements were premature, lacked proper planning, and were made without key terms and conditions in place to protect public funds. My question is simple: Does the Premier believe in public accountability for the spending of public money?
THE PREMIER « » : Absolutely, and that's what's offered through media releases, through budget discussions, and through press releases. Every dollar that the government spends is in a very public format. There are times when the government needs to act. I think what the deputy was referencing and was clarified in the media is this is a policy that has been in place way back when the NDP was in, way back when the Liberals were in. It's a government policy.
The deputy minister has had a long, impressive career in government and was simply referring to sometimes the way things go about. Sometimes they are verbal, but of course, there are presentations and research. I ask the member, as I did in Estimates, which ones of the additional appropriations is she against - EfficiencyOne, Cape Breton University? Which ones doesn't she like?
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : The defensiveness around tabling the spending of public money in this Legislature is astounding. In 2022-23, additional appropriations surpassed 10 per cent of the province's total annual expenditures, with this government breaking its own record. With increased out-of-budget spending comes increased concerns about transparency. Luckily for us, there is a clear way to increase transparency. At the federal and provincial level across this country, over-budget spending is required to be tabled in the Legislature, with the exception of one province: ours, Nova Scotia. Seven provinces and the federal government require special warrants to be tabled in the Legislature when spending is not in session. I'll ask again: Why is the Premier so opposed to the most basic accounting for the use of public funds?
THE PREMIER « » : I completely reject the premise of the question. There are quarterly financial updates. There are forecast updates. There are media releases. The reality is that the NDP is so negative about everything that happens in this province. They're negative on investments that the province would make and some of the additional appropriations that apparently the NDP is negative on - $140 million for EfficiencyOne - a pretty good organization, I would say. Money for StFX, for CBU, for Screen Nova Scotia, Horticulture Nova Scotia, Halifax International Airport Authority - these are the types of investments the NDP is negative on. Why doesn't the NDP just call it what it is? They don't like those investments. I think they're good investments.
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : The Auditor General has been very clear that this majority government can spend whatever it wants, and yet it chooses not to be transparent about it. Transparency would not reduce their ability to spend any of the money that the Premier just rattled off in an attempt to avoid my question. There may be no clearer example of this government's proclivity to spend in the dark than Hogan Court. In this report, the Auditor General looked at just one project and found $81 million had been spent inappropriately through alternative procurement. That means no public tendering, no transparency. Reliance on this kind of spending is growing. Last year, Nova Scotia Health Authority spent, through alternative procurement, double what they did in 2020, when there was an emergency and a pandemic. Again, can the Premier explain why he thinks he doesn't need to be accountable to Nova Scotians when spending their money?
THE PREMIER « » : Speaker, the question has been asked and answered many times. The NDP doesn't like the answer. The answer is there is very public disclosure of every dollar spent, through press conferences, through media reports, through discussions - very, very public. It is absolutely, completely false to suggest that there is some lack of transparency.
I'll answer the question on the health spending. It has gone up since 2020. You know why? Because the former government didn't invest in health care, and we do. We're awful proud of that.