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Dear Friend,
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| Congratulations to District 5 MLA Michele
Beaton on the passage of her first bill, giving more teeth to
the Auditor General by granting them the authority to audit the use of
taxpayer funds by third party organizations. |
What a time the last little while has been on PEI; following months
of isolation and shutdown, the past couple of weeks have brought some
sense of normalcy as more businesses open up, small social gatherings
take advantage of the nice weather, and the PEI Legislature finally
began sitting again after a long hiatus, bringing much needed
accountability and transparency back to the governance of
PEI.
However, in one of the first and biggest signs that
Islanders and others around the world are not willing to accept a
return to all aspects of the "old normal", thousands took to the
streets of Charlottetown on Friday, as in other cities throughout
Canada and the U.S., demanding an end to all forms of racism and
discrimination.
As Peter Bevan-Baker said in the Legislature on June
2nd, "The legacy of slavery, racism and oppression continues to
take new, ever-changing forms in our society. Like those who fought it
in the past, we must confront it whenever and wherever it appears and
not let it take root."
The Green Party is ready to take on the work of ensuring that our
party is part of the solution when it comes to ending the
discrimination, violence and underrepresentation that continues to
oppress black, Indigenous and people of colour in our society. Please
see further below how you can join us in that work!
Jordan Bober
Executive Director
(interim)
In this newsletter:
- "Emergency" Legislative Sitting Recap
-
From the Desks of Green MLAs
- Call for Volunteers
- Energy consultation - have your say!
"Emergency" Legislative Sitting
On May 26th, PEI's Legislature was the last in Canada to be
recalled since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Deemed an
"emergency" sitting, which the government had anticipated would last
only a couple of days, yesterday MLAs rose from Week 2 of the sitting
and are due back in on Tuesday, June 9th. It's beginning to look more
and more like a regular spring sitting that could last for several
weeks - which is just fine, as there is much work to be done, and many
precautions have been taken to ensure MLAs can maintain physical
distancing while at work.
Here are some highlights from the past two weeks of the
Legislature:
Day
1
 Peter
Bevan-Baker questioned the Premier on his decision to open up PEI to
thousands of cottagers, including from provinces with
continued community spread of COVID-19, particularly when this
deviated from the phased re-opening plan approved by Dr. Heather
Morrison. Many Islanders have expressed their concerns about allowing
cottagers onto the Island too early, citing the risks of reversing our
COVID-free status and keeping vulnerable Islanders, such as those
living in long-term care homes or with immunocompromised conditions,
isolated in their homes for the indefinite future.
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At long last, PEI has its first independent Child &
Youth Advocate, Marvin Bernstein. The Legislature also appointed Denise
Doiron as the the Information & Privacy Commissioner, and
Darren Noonan as the new Auditor General. Welcome to
all of these new independent officers of the Legislature!
Day
2
 District 21 MLA and Green Economic Development
Critic Lynne Lund questioned the Premier on the
composition of his new economic recovery council, which
did not go through an Engage PEI recruitment process and is missing
voices from many critical sectors and regions of PEI. This is the
second economic recovery council appointed by the Premier since March.
The Premier had initially refused to reveal the composition of that first
group, then disbanded it, although it recently emerged that the
first group is still meeting. Rather confusing affair...
Day
3
 Opposition Health Critic Trish
Altass questioned Health Minister James Aylward on his
overseas trip to Ireland at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as
well as his failure to return directly home to self-isolate upon his
return.
Steve
Howard questioned the Health Minister on the
effectiveness of outsourced verification calls being made to those
required to self-isolate on PEI.
Day
4
Michele Beaton questioned the government on
the $4.7 million handout that it offered Cavendish Farms
via the Potato Board under the guise of "supporting farmers", while
other Island businesses are only being offered loans at best. This led
to a very interesting exchange with the Minister of
Agriculture, and is a prime example of the important role of the
Legislature and the Official Opposition in holding the government to
account and bringing greater transparency to government dealings.
Week One video recap from Peter
Bevan-Baker
Day 5: Two Green
bills and one motion passed!
 Michele
Beaton, MLA for District 5 Mermaid-Stratford and Opposition Finance
Critic, passed her first bill! Bill No. 113 -
An Act to Amend the Audit Act - ads "follow-the-dollar"
powers to the Auditor General's toolbox, allowing him or her to to
audit private companies and non-profits that have received government
funding, whether in the form of loans, grants, subsidies or tax
credits, to ensure that public funds were spend as
intended.
WATCH: 13 minute interview with Michele Beaton on The
Exchange, about her journey to politics and the passage of her first
bill.
That
same day saw the passage of Peter Bevan-Baker's bill which provides
protection to whistleblowers in the private sector. Once
proclaimed as law, this bill will provide a mechanism for employees of
private companies to be able to bring up cases of misconduct in their
workplaces while being protected from retaliation from
employers.
Before the day wrapped up, District 22 MLA Steve
Howard's motion on Protecting Privacy and Personal
Information During the COVID-19 Pandemic was brought
up for debate and passed in a unanimous vote of the
Legislature.
Day
6
 Peter Bevan-Baker
rose in the Legislature together with the leaders of the other
parties, and other MLAs, to speak about the recent wave of protests
sparked by the murder of George Floyd, a black man, at the hands of
police in Minneapolis, as well as a number of other violent and deadly
interactions between police and black and Indigenous people both in
the U.S. and Canada.
"I’ve often said during this pandemic that there is no place in
this whole wide world that I’d rather be right now than here on Prince
Edward Island. I continue to feel that way, but we must not forget
that we have issues here, too. Prejudice, a lack of inclusion and
overt racism are sadly no stranger to our Island. As leaders, each and
every one of us in this Legislature bears special responsibilities.
While we often say the right words, it is through our actions, our
daily actions inside this House and in our communities where we must
consistently and continually foster kindness, gentleness and love for
each other." -Peter Bevan-Baker, June 2, 2020.
Read Peter's full remarks
here.
Day
7
 District 11 MLA Hannah Bell continues her strong
advocacy for the most vulnerable Islanders - including
students, newcomers, and people living with disabilities. She
celebrated the re-opening the province's COVID-19 Special Situation
Fund, which is meant to help those who fall through the cracks of
other federal and provincial support programs - and her advocacy even
won thanks from the government side of the House!
Day
8
Much of this day's 3-hour sitting was taken up with
debate on the recommendation from the Legislative Rules committee,
chaired by Hannah Bell, to update the Legislative sitting schedule by
eliminating evening sittings. This recommendation dates back
to an 11-year old report from the PEI Coalition for Women in
Government, as one easy way to make it easier for parents of young
children, particularly women, to contemplate running for election as
an MLA.
PEI is one of only three jurisdictions in Canada to continue
to hold sitting hours after 7pm. Our sitting schedule was designed to
accommodate the schedules of passenger trains that have not run on
this Island since 1968, and it has frequently been argued over the
years that modernizing our sitting schedule is some of the
lowest-hanging fruit when it comes to measures that can be taken to
increase the diversity of the Legislature. It is sad to see continued
opposition to this measure from some male MLAs who apparently still do
not see this as a small, positive step in the right direction in a
province with one of the lowest representations of women in
Canada.
Opposition Critic for Transportation, Energy and Infrastructure,
Steve Howard, questioned the government on Maritime
Electric's plans to raise electricity rates at a time when
many are hard-hit financially due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and
renewed his call for a fair rate structure on PEI. Contrary
to most other provinces, PEI uses a perverse rate structure that gives
large power users lower rates than small users, so that, as Steve put
it, "The many pay for the extravagances of the few."
From the desks of Green MLAs
Our MLAs have had a lot to
say about a diverse array of topics in the past
month!
With businesses beginning to reopen as part of Renew PEI, MLA
Lynne Lund is urging the Government to include a business owner's lens
to decision making because small and medium-sized businesses are at a
disadvantage.
Due to the unfortunate temporary closing of some mental health
and addictions services as a result of COVID-19, there are even bigger
gaps in the system. MLA Trish Altass questions why Lennon House was
only funded now and why it is only pilot-level funding.
Women are being disproportionately affected COVID-19 in many
areas including homeschooling, single-mother households, and as
essential workers. Official Opposition Critic for Status of Women
Karla Bernard is concerned a Gender Based Analysis lens has not been
applied to Renew PEI and urges Government to do so.
MLA Lynne Lund is concerned about the secrecy around the
Premier's new Economic Recovery Council. Every industry has different
needs and perspectives, and unless we know details of the Economic
Recovery Council, we don't know if voices are being left out and where
those gaps lie.
Official Opposition Critic for Transportation, Infrastructure
and Energy Steve Howard argues that with the decrease in usage of our
roads due to COVID-19, it is the perfect time to make creative and
healthy changes to our road infrastructure.
As Renew PEI moves through its various stages, we know many
local businesses are struggling and Island owned businesses need
local support now more than ever. Official Opposition Critic
for Finance Michele Beaton suggests that the Government begins to take
procurement seriously by creating a local procurement
strategy.
Official Opposition Statements
Minister Brad Trivers tweeted an accusation of
"#fakenews" and the Leader of the Official Opposition Peter
Bevan-Baker acknowledges that journalistic independence and integrity
are critical for democracy. He calls on the government to direct its
Ministers to respect and honour the independence and integrity of our
journalists.
In early May, Premier King had been actively lobbying the
federal government to change the rules around the Canadian Emergency
Response Benefit. With a shortage of work, and many safety concerns
still unresolved, it is unfair and inappropriate for the Premier to
state people are being "paid to not work".
The Official Opposition believes it is important to hold
Government to account. The Official Opposition had begun hosting a
virtual QP until the House reconvenes for regular sittings.
The residents of Prince Edward Home and their families
were not consulted in advance regarding the facility being designated
a COVID-19 unit. The Official Opposition is concerned that the
residents and their families were left out of consultations on a
decision that could have effects on their health and
well-being.
With a lack of clarity around access to childcare during the
Renew PEI phases, many caregivers are anxious about whether or not
they will have access to childcare. MLA Karla Bernard is asking for
clarification on who is and who isn't eligible for childcare in each
phase of Renew PEI Together.
Government's proposed Highway 1 route extension would run
through 0.72 acres of protected old growth forest. Lynne Lund
questions why the Minister of Environment and Climate
Change Natalie Jameson is prepared to remove protections on a piece of
conserved land in her own district.
Economic decisions made now will be some of the most
economically important undertakings of our time. Unfortunately, many
government announcements over the past few weeks demonstrate the lack
of understanding of the issues facing Islanders. On top of
that, Premier King's government has continued to leave islanders in
the dark about the Economic Recovery Council.
The government released draft amendments to the Emergency
Measures Act and the Public Health Act that will give itself sweeping
new powers. This level of power is concerning and raises many
questions.
Under the current Audit Act, the Auditor General does not
have all of the powers necessary to fully complete an audit of
the COVID-19 relief spending. Michele Beaton, Official Opposition
Critic for Finance, says she would be introducing amendments to the
Act in the legislature the following week.
We stand together with Black Islanders, Black Canadians and all
racialized peoples, and we commit as elected members of the
Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island to work towards ending
oppression and building a more equal society.
The Green Caucus has been hard
at work to improve the lives of Islanders. If you haven't already, be
sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram.
And check out their new website at www.peigreencaucus.ca
for blogs, videos and more!
Green Party of PEI Diversity
& Inclusion Caucus
Recent events in both the United States and Canada are catalysing
long-overdue conversations about the persistence of both overt and
subtle, unconscious and systemic racism and discrimination in our
societies, including here on PEI.
As a political party with core values of respect for diversity,
inclusion and social justice, the Green Party of PEI, led by our
Diversity & Inclusion Caucus, is putting renewed effort into the
important work of ensuring that our political community is a welcome,
inclusive and representative space for all Islanders, and how we can
best contribute to the elimination of discrimination of all kinds from
our society.
Are you interested in helping with this important work? If
so, please join us! Write to us at
[email protected].
Call for Volunteers & Performers: Dream-a-thon
fundraising initiative
COVID-19 has brought a myriad of challenges to most non-profit
organizations, and as a 100% donor-funded organization the Green Party
of PEI is no exception. The inability to organize in-person events has
hampered our fundraising, yet fundraising is critical to our ability
to continue being a strong force for change on PEI - and to be ready
to compete and win in the next election.
Our Fundraising Working Group, led by Fundraising Chair Maria
Rodriguez, has come up with a creative fundraising idea this summer:
An online dream-a-thon! With a name inspired by our Dreaming
Forward initiative, the Dream-a-thon is envisioned as an online
extravaganza featuring performances by many of the talented Islanders
who support our work.
We are currently seeking both volunteers and performers who
can help make this event a success! If you'd like to lend a hand or
have a talent you'd like to offer to perform (musical, storytelling or
anything else that can be shared online), please do get in touch!
Write to us at [email protected].
How we obtain and use energy on PEI needs to undergo a major
transformation in the next decade in order to meet our new,
science-backed imperative to reduce greenhouse emissions by at least
45% by 2030 in order to contribute our share towards the global
emissions reductions necessary to avoid catastrophic warming of more
than 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The PEI Government is currently consulting on changes to
the province's energy legislation and this is the most important shot
we have of updating our energy legislation in a way that will set us
up for success.
You can help by telling the government what changes you would like
to see in our energy legislation - the deadline for written
submissions is June 8th, however you can also send an email right now
letting them know that you need a bit more time.
Read more about the provincial Energy
Legislation Consultation here.
To give you some ideas, we asked Official Opposition Energy
Critic Steve Howard what he sees as some of the most needed updates to
our energy legislation. Read more about them on our website at https://www.greenparty.pe.ca/energy2020,
or get the gist from the infographic below:
The Green Party and our Caucus have so much in the works for
you as part of our Dreaming Forward series, but due to uncertainties
around how long the current legislative sitting will last, we need to
wait just a little bit before sending you the final dates of
interactive, solution-building forums on topics including Agriculture
& Food, Education, Health & Wellness, Green Economic
Development, and more.
Stay tuned for a special Events bulletin in your inbox
soon!
Get daily updates from the Green Party of PEI - follow us on
Facebook, Twitter or Instagram today!
We can't do any of this without
your support!
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