QP - Poverty Rates
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Housing costs are soaring. Power bills have gone up by an average of $400 per family in this province and will soon rise higher. Under this government, the number of Nova Scotians living in poverty has risen by 59 percent, and our poverty rate is the highest in the country.
My question to the Premier is: Why won't this government take action to lower people's power bills?
THE PREMIER « » : The fact of the matter is we've taken a number of steps. If not for the steps that we've taken, power rates would be significantly higher in this province. As we continue to take steps and as we take steps, the Opposition - the NDP in particular - try to block it. They try to vote against it. They tried to block it when we cut taxes to the tune of $500 million for Nova Scotians. They voted against that. When we took the tolls off, they voted against that. Parking free at hospitals - they voted against that, and the Nova Scotia School Lunch Program, the list goes on and on.
We are working on behalf of Nova Scotians. We know there is work to be done, and we will keep doing it despite the objections, despite the attempts to block us, by the NDP.
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Speaker, I didn't hear an answer, so I will try a different way. Nova Scotia Power's plan to hike rates again will drive costs higher for Nova Scotians. At a time when everything is more expensive and after a recent data breach that put our personal information at risk, this is the last thing that Nova Scotians need.
Power is not a luxury that people can choose to do without, and it is the government's job to make sure that essentials like power are affordable and reliable. With a $1.2-billion deficit, this government has been spending taxpayers' money at record levels. Why won't they help families afford their heat this winter?
THE PREMIER « » : That $1.2-billion investment is investments in Nova Scotians. I'm not happy about a deficit, but I am of the knowledge that we need to invest in Nova Scotians, and we will continue to invest in Nova Scotians. We will continue to work to move this province forward. If the member opposite doesn't like what we are investing in, then the member opposite should just be clear with Nova Scotians about which programs they would like to see cut, which investments they would rather we not make, but we will continue to invest in Nova Scotians. They have a right to expect it, and they will get it from this government.
CLAUDIA CHENDER « » : Speaker, $1.2 billion of debt and a 59 percent rise in poverty doesn't sound like it's doing very well for many Nova Scotians. We have proposed regulatory changes, a low-income power rate, and a utility ownership study to make power more affordable for Nova Scotians, and none of this has happened. Now we are calling for a 10 percent rebate to give people a break on rising costs.
Other provinces have stopped corporations from keeping private information for no reason and have given people more protection under the law if data is stolen, and it has not caused chaos. Why does this government think that Nova Scotians deserve the bare minimum and not the solutions that are on the table?
THE PREMIER « » : As the member would know - because the member voted against it - we cut taxes to the tune of $500 million. As the member would know, there are 334 schools in this province right now where over 104,000 students get provided lunch at school. The member knows because the member voted against it, and I find it extremely laughable to hear that member talk about standing up to Nova Scotia Power.
The last time the NDP was in government, they were flying around in Nova Scotia Power private jets. The only time they stood up to Nova Scotia Power was when the pilot said, "Time to disembark the flight."