L001 - Tue 22 Apr 1986 / Mar 22 avr 1986
SUCCESSION LAW REFORM AMENDMENT ACT
PRIVATE MEMBERS' PUBLIC BUSINESS
The Second Session of the 33rd Parliament of the province of Ontario opened at 3 p.m. for the dispatch of business pursuant to a proclamation of the Honourable Lincoln Alexander, Lieutenant Governor of the province.
The Honourable the Lieutenant Governor, having entered the chamber and being seated upon the throne, was pleased to open the session with the following gracious speech.
SPEECH FROM THE THRONE
Hon. Mr. Alexander: Pray be seated.
Mr. Speaker and members of the Legislative Assembly, j'ai l'honneur de vous souhaiter la bienvenue à l'ouverture de cette seconde session du 33e Parlement de l'Ontario, surtout qu'il s'agit pour moi de la première occasion.
I would like to say for the benefit of all this afternoon that in the light of Her Majesty's 60th birthday we did send her greetings, and at this time I would like to indicate to you just what was written. It is dated April 14, 1986, and directed to Sir William Heseltine, Her Majesty's secretary.
"I should be grateful if you would kindly convey to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, warm greetings from Her Honour and me, as Her Majesty's representative in the province of Ontario, Canada. We reaffirm to Her Majesty our abiding loyalty and deep affection and join with the citizens of Ontario in wishing Her Majesty a very happy birthday."
Ontarians wish to express the pleasure we share, along with all Canadians, in the upcoming marriage of His Royal Highness The Prince Andrew. As well, the province will be honoured with a visit by Her Royal Highness The Princess Anne in late June. This occasion will provide us with an opportunity to express the pride we feel in our heritage as a constitutional monarchy.
Recognizing the commitment of the people of Ontario to fundamental principles, an invitation has been extended to Bishop Desmond Tutu to address this assembly during his visit to Ontario in late May.
The assembly enters this session with some work left from the last time it gathered. At that time, members made an impressive start towards fulfilling a forward-looking program, including freedom of information and privacy legislation, pay equity, improved labour laws, family law reform and policies to ensure the availability of affordable housing while guaranteeing fairness for tenants and landlords.
My government will continue to work for sound reform in these and other areas. However, it will focus particular attention on the fundamental challenges Ontario must face in order to fulfil its potential.
The agenda for the next decade that is set forth today offers a framework for long-term achievement rather than a list of short-term promises.
It outlines some of the steps Ontario must take over the next decade to ensure its place as the world-class society of the 21st century.
While continuing to build on our traditional resources and manufacturing sectors, we must master the new standards of a world economy characterized by an intense competition focused on services, knowledge, information and new technology in order to maintain and create jobs.
We must provide excellence and relevance in education and training, particularly in shaping a generation capable of innovating and seizing opportunities.
We must ensure our ability to provide affordable and accessible quality health care and social services for all in the light of increased needs created by demographic shifts in the age composition of the Ontario population and changing family structures.
We must continue to advance the government's fundamental values of openness, accessibility, fairness, opportunity and the pursuit of excellence.
My government will remain vigilant in controlling the cost of government and consistent in steering it clear of ventures that are best left to the private sector.
My government will continue to recognize our province's responsibilities to our nation. Ontario is determined to play a constructive leadership role in building a stronger Canada with a bright future for all its people.
The world economy is in an era of transition. Ontario enters this period with considerable strengths.
Our economy has emerged leaner and stronger from a decade in which the world economy experienced significant upheaval.
Over the past 12 months, 179,000 jobs have been created in Ontario. The first three months of this year saw the creation of 73,000 new jobs.
Housing starts in the province rose to an annual rate of 78,000 in the fourth quarter of 1985, the highest rate in more than seven years. That robust trend has continued in the early months of this year. In urban areas, starts from January to March were 66.5 per cent higher than in the same period in 1985.
Increased economic activity has driven the unemployment rate down to 6.8 per cent, the lowest in Canada.
Not everyone nor every region in this province has had the chance to share equally in its growth. It is vital that we build upon our ability to create prosperity and provide opportunity for all, including northern Ontarians, eastern Ontarians, women and minorities.
In order to prepare our economic structure for the decades ahead, we must set our horizons beyond Canada's borders, adapt our institutions and utilize fully and productively the knowledge, ingenuity and skills of our people.
The application of technology combined with low wage rates has made newly industrializing countries increasingly competitive with us. In more developed economies, rapid advances in science and technology are creating new industries based on skills, knowledge and innovation.
Our past performance in technological innovation has produced some notable successes, but we must co-ordinate and target these efforts to accelerate growth, bolster their commercial impact and open up jobs and opportunities for Ontarians.
Ontario will flourish as an enterprising society only when business, labour, educational institutions and government work together to create prosperity and opportunity.
3:10 p.m.
My government will move immediately to achieve that goal. It will establish a Premier's council to steer Ontario into the forefront of economic leadership and technological innovation. The high-level council will be chaired by the Premier (Mr. Peterson) and include as active participants several cabinet ministers and leaders of business, labour and post-secondary education.
The council will direct a $1-billion special technology fund, at least $500 million of which will be new moneys, to be allocated over the next decade. The fund will support, complement and encourage science and technology research in the private sector and post-secondary institutions.
The council will direct moneys to business, universities and colleges by way of shared financing. Government will act as a catalyst to stimulate joint ventures in strategic fields. A priority will be co-operation with post-secondary schools which demonstrate effectiveness in basic research and success in securing commercial contracts in applied research.
The council will champion entrepreneurship and innovation across the province to establish firmly Ontario's position as a world-class, internationally competitive society. It will be asked to undertake several key tasks, including:
Establishment of broad provincial priorities in support of critical industries and technologies, to concentrate our resources on areas of specialization and avoid duplication;
Encouragement of the most productive investment in basic research, applied research and technology transfer;
Development of approaches to maximize the effectiveness of this province's investment in technology centres, innovation centres and the Ontario Research Foundation.
Among the council's early initiatives will be the establishment of distinguished chairs in science and entrepreneurship at Ontario universities.
My government will also join with the private sector to establish a nonprofit centre devoted to increased public awareness and understanding of information technology. The centre will offer valuable assistance to the Ontario information technology industry in product development and will serve as a world-class public showcase for this province's technology.
The government will address the growing importance of the service sector of our economy. The service sector has steadily increased in importance over the past four decades. Its growth has been particularly pronounced in industries characterized by a large know-how component, such as health care, education and a broad range of expert services to business, and in expanding fields of expertise, such as environmental management, agricultural technology and public administration.
The service sector now provides jobs for more than 70 per cent of Ontario's work force and is expected to grow considerably more over the next 10 years.
Global trade in services is now growing at almost the same rate as trade in goods and already accounts for as much as 25 per cent of world trade.
A study of the Ontario service sector, its capacity for further growth and the ways the province can help it thrive, is well under way. The preliminary findings will be made public shortly. Measures to address some early opportunities for action will be pursued in this session.
The mandate of the Ontario International Corp. will be expanded to enable it to better market Ontario's world-class private sector and public sector goods and services.
The maintenance of a vital and growing capital market in Ontario will be given a high priority. Regulations concerning the securities industry will be introduced to ensure Ontario's ability to compete in a changing, internationally competitive market.
My government will work with the private sector to establish a Canadian insurance exchange in Toronto and will pursue the designation of Toronto as an international banking centre, if such designation of cities is undertaken by the federal government.
My government will expand opportunity for small business and entrepreneurship. Small business is directly responsible for most of the new jobs created over the past decade. It is a leading source of opportunity for women, young people and minorities.
My government will introduce several measures to enhance the competitiveness of the vital small business sector.
The mandate of small business development corporations will be expanded to include assistance to the business services sector.
An Ontario investment network will be established in co-operation with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. The province-wide, self-sustaining network will help small business find out more about market conditions and government programs and bring together entrepreneurs seeking capital for new and expanding companies with private equity investors.
To enhance competition and benefit customers, my government will introduce legislation to permit the distribution of beer and wine in independent grocery stores.
Entrepreneurship is as important on the shop floor as it is in the boardrooms. Employee participation in ownership of the business in which they work provides tangible benefits to the individual, the firm and the economy as a whole. My government believes in helping to provide workers with a direct stake in their firm's success.
To this end, the Treasurer (Mr. Nixon) will be announcing the creation of an Ontario employee share ownership program. Incentives will be provided to stimulate the creation of a wide range of employee share ownership plans, from bonus allotments to employee buyouts, resulting in productivity improvements, increased international competitiveness and improved labour-management relations.
Ontario's economic success depends to a large extent on our ability to sell our goods and services in the fiercely competitive international market. Close to home, the United States market accounts for nearly 90 per cent of Ontario's exports. Through our network of trade and investment offices, the government will work with business to enhance our access to the US and European markets and strengthen our ability to draw on US and European technology.
But we must expand our trade horizons. To begin that process, my government will build stronger investment, trade, technology and cultural links with the nations of the Pacific Rim, the fastest growing market in the world.
Later this year, the Premier will lead a major government mission, involving senior business and labour leaders, to the Pacific Rim. My government will augment that effort with several steps, including:
The appointment of an agent general in Tokyo;
The establishment of a trade office in Seoul;
The opening of a science, technology and cultural centre in China;
The implementation of graduate student exchange programs with Pacific Rim nations.
These steps will raise Ontario's profile and help Ontario companies obtain access to greater technology, trade and investment opportunities. My government recognizes the importance of Ontario's primary industries, which still provide the economic backbone of rural Ontario and northern and eastern communities.
In response to the needs of Ontario's farm community, my government will enhance our programs, offering financing and marketing support for Ontario farmers.
Additional assistance will be developed to improve the health of Ontario farm animals and aid farmers to enhance the care and productivity of their soils.
A key initiative will be undertaken to double food exports to the Pacific Rim.
These measures will be geared to building upon the competitive base of Ontario's farmers and food processors. To that end, a special program will be put in place to provide marketing assistance to northern Ontario farmers and widen consumer choice in that region.
3:20 p.m.
My government will also pursue a policy of encouraging the adaptation of research and advanced technology to the needs of the food industry. Early efforts in that direction include a modernized pesticide laboratory to maintain the highest standards of expertise in pesticide analysis and a world-class food quality laboratory to safeguard Ontario consumers by ensuring that food products meet established quality and safety standards.
Programs will also be put in place to advance modern technology in other primary industries, including funding to increase the technology development and export potential of two rapidly emerging industries -- remote sensing and computerized base mapping.
Ontario will take advantage of the growing potential of the tourism industry.
My government, working closely with the private sector, will develop and implement a long-term tourism strategy.
The plan will include several immediate initiatives, including aggressive new promotion and marketing campaigns; a hospitality training and awareness campaign to encourage repeat visits; and improved signage, rest stops and travel information centres to enhance highway travel.
Priority will be given to the preparation of a tourism strategy specifically tailored to the needs of northern and eastern Ontario.
Immediate initiatives will include additional funding for a northern Ontario tourism development program to take advantage of new business opportunities in the north. Additional funding will be directed to enhance tourism attractions and facilities in eastern Ontario, including upgrading of our eastern gateway travel centre in Lancaster.
Special consideration will be given to regional requirements, such as assistance for capital improvements.
Ontario will continue to be a world leader in environmental protection. The penalty provisions of our environmental laws will be strengthened. My government is determined to take further steps to protect the quality of our drinking water.
The Ministry of the Environment's world-class laboratory services have been allocated additional funds to improve their capacity for environmental testing. These changes will allow another 230,000 tests on organic samples to be performed this year, a 60 per cent increase over the past.
The province will pursue opportunities for innovation and development to meet environmental needs at home and market technologies abroad. Development of enhanced waste water treatment technology will be a priority.
My government is committed to ensuring that Ontario Hydro is a responsive agent for economic development in the province. The government recognizes Hydro's importance to the competitiveness of Ontario industry.
In planning for future growth, Hydro will pursue opportunities for diversification in our generation mix, such as industrial cogeneration and municipal solid waste incineration. Steps have already been taken to encourage small power production by the private sector so that we make full use of Ontario's water resources.
Hydro's role in fostering economic development is particularly important to northern Ontario, where service levels and reliability go far to determine economic wellbeing.
To ensure responsiveness to northern needs, a northern advisory board for Ontario Hydro will be established. The board will be given a mandate to pursue policies that increase the corporation's contribution to northern social and economic development.
My government will implement a policy to direct and co-ordinate management of its property holdings in order to support aggressively our economic and social objectives, sell surplus lands and create new opportunities for ventures with the private sector.
Our tax system must also be reformed in the context of the economic and social changes that are occurring in our economy. The government will be proposing changes to increase the equity and efficiency of federal and provincial tax structures in securing our social and economic objectives.
As part of the government's commitment to opening up the budget process, a new committee of the Legislature will be created. The members of this committee will be asked to consider and report on the fiscal and economic circumstances of the province as part of the 1987 budget process.
To compete successfully in tomorrow's economic environment, we must recognize today's economic trends. Ontario can took forward to economic advantages in the future, but they will be substantially different from those we have enjoyed in the past.
Notre province ne pourra s'épanouir qu'avec le savoir, la souplesse et les qualités d'entrepreneur de sa population. Mon gouvernement reconnaît, en conséquence, que cette population constitue la plus grande richesse de la province.
The new advanced industries and sophisticated services offer great opportunity for knowledge workers who have learned how to adapt to the need for frequent adjustment.
My government is determined to ensure excellence through all stages of education -- in elementary and secondary schools, colleges and universities and skills training and enhancement programs.
In achieving these goals, the underlying principle guiding our education policy will be a commitment to relevance. That commitment will include new efforts to develop scientific interest and innovative approaches, particularly at the elementary school level.
To begin to achieve that goal, my government will take some immediate steps.
TVOntario will be given increased funding to produce more programming with particular emphasis on the educational curriculum, especially in the science field.
Greater effort will be devoted to helping students and teachers become more familiar and comfortable with new computer technology.
A program will be undertaken to advance excellence in education for young women, including initiatives to encourage career exploration in fields related to science, mathematics and technology. Special emphasis will be placed on examples of female achievement in the field, occupational opportunities and training routes.
Education must provide young people with a bridge to business, industry and employment. Students must be encouraged to develop entrepreneurial qualities, such as self-motivation and the ability to originate ideas about how things can be done better and more productively. Schools must also help young people to learn more about the world of business and the job market they will enter.
To provide young people with this background, my government will embark immediately on a number of policies.
Innovative courses in entrepreneurship will be encouraged throughout the education system, to help students recognize their potential and broaden their horizons.
Active partnerships in teaching and learning between schools and local business will be promoted, to permit students, school staff and business people to work side by side on mutually beneficial projects.
Schools will be assisted to provide computerized job search programs in order to furnish students in higher grades with information on labour market prospects, job search techniques and related educational and training programs.
Greater emphasis will be placed on cooperative education programs, to improve transition to the work force.
The economic changes we are experiencing place a premium on the need for continuing education and new tools of learning for remote communities, especially the use of communications and information technologies. With these goals in mind, my government will take the following steps.
A high school of science and technology, located in northern Ontario and accessible to students from the region, will be established and linked to local research, college or university facilities.
A major project in northern Ontario will be undertaken to expand the use of new technologies in delivering distance education to remote communities. This project will also build on the clear potential for developing these technologies locally.
Ontario's ability to meet many of the challenges it faces depends on how well it can harness the full potential of its post-secondary education system.
Ontario needs graduates who understand science, technology and innovation, and business administration, marketing and international trade.
3:30 p.m.
My government is committed to enabling Ontario universities and colleges to establish their essential place on the path to excellence in these and other targeted areas. This will involve determining the areas of specialty universities can master and the avoidance of unnecessary program duplication.
Once decisions about the areas of concentration have been made in consultation with the post-secondary institutions, my government will support excellence through appropriate funding and measures directed towards institutional accountability.
Schools of advanced education can fulfil their potential by recognizing the need to co-operate, as well as compete.
In addition to maintaining the ability to provide quality in the core programs of liberal arts and science, my government will encourage the development of centres of excellence in Ontario's post-secondary institutions.
In 1985, my government introduced a post-secondary education excellence fund to provide for renewal of faculty and physical plant. That principle will be extended.
Over the next 10 years, skills and flexibility will become increasingly essential for knowledge workers to meet the demands of the modern working environment.
The changes we face make necessary a new approach to training and skills upgrading, on an ongoing basis, for the entire labour force.
As an immediate priority, my government will develop a skills bank containing an inventory of training and professional development packages readily accessible to firms which are not yet sophisticated trainers. Essential to the quality and relevance of the training packages will be close collaboration among industry, labour and education leaders in sectors facing rapid change.
To ensure the highest standards of training, the skills bank will operate in conjunction with a fund to encourage the development of training programs that utilize new technologies in teaching skills.
As well, my government will offer further programs to improve and expand training in this province and meet specific needs.
Special efforts will be undertaken to promote broad access to skills training for women, single parents, minorities, the residents of remote communities, the physically handicapped and others facing unique or long-standing barriers.
A greater priority will be placed on the retraining needs of older workers and others in the work force.
Assistance will be provided to potential employers, particularly in small businesses, who wish to train but whose circumstances constrain their ability to offer effective programs.
Enhanced consulting services will be offered to improve training in industry, and the skills of training instructors will be upgraded.
While providing education and skills upgrading to those who can readily benefit, Ontario must also address the needs of the functionally illiterate.
My government has begun to examine the problem and review programs and will offer proposals to combat illiteracy through schools, libraries, colleges and other institutions.
Government efforts will be directed to advancing the ability of all Ontarians to learn and adapt in an era in which knowledge will become increasingly essential.
Ontario's system of health care and social services ranks with the best in the world. My government is committed to maintaining its strengths and adapting to changing needs.
The next decade provides the province with one of its greatest challenges and most exciting opportunities in these fields. Meeting this challenge and making the most of this opportunity will require bold approaches, innovative thinking and resourceful management.
Our ageing population, developments in technology, professional advancements and new programs and facilities are changing the way in which the health care system responds to the needs of the population.
Over the past decade, public expenditures on health care in Ontario have escalated at a pace far greater than the rate of inflation. In recent years, Ministry of Health expenditures have grown at between 13 and 14 per cent annually. The Ministry of Health budget is now close to $9 billion and represents approximately 31 per cent of the total provincial budget.
If these trends were to continue to the year 2001, the ministry budget would nearly double. One of the most significant factors contributing to increased costs is the growth in the number of elderly persons. Between now and the year 2001, the province will see a 41 per cent increase in people over the age of 65. The number of people over age 85 will nearly double. These age groups represent major users of acute care facilities, long-term institutional care, the drug benefit program, home care and physician services.
The costs associated with meeting these needs will have a major impact on total government expenditures in the future.
Confronted by the changing demographics, the cost of new high-technology equipment, the demands for capital funding and the need for more community-based programs, it is imperative that we begin to plan now for the provision of first-class health care well into the 21st century.
My government will launch a study on future directions in health care. Among the issues that must be addressed are changes in the demographic and health profiles of citizens, trends in health, manpower and technology, the need for emphasis on preventive medicine and the changing patterns of health services.
The province remains firmly committed to the principle of equal access to Ontario's health care system. It will proceed with the Health Care Accessibility Act to ensure this principle is strengthened and preserved.
Additional steps will be taken to improve the level of health care in this province.
Greater resources will be committed to cancer treatment and care.
A multi-year plan will be developed to meet the capital needs of Ontario hospitals.
My government is committed to improving the quality of life of the elderly and supporting their desire to live fully independent lives. A cabinet minister responsible for the specific concerns of senior citizens, the first in Canada, has spent considerable time meeting with the elderly and their representatives, as well as with experts in geriatrics and community care.
The minister will shortly release a white paper on health and social services for the elderly. It will provide clear directions to best serve the needs of senior citizens in ways that will allow them to maintain their independence.
My government is committed to marshalling the resources of all relevant ministries to implement needed steps in the near future.
Greater emphasis will be placed on programs to allow seniors to live independently in their own communities.
Community services will be co-ordinated to ensure that senior citizens who require assistance are properly assessed and obtain the necessary services with a minimum of inconvenience and delay.
Regional geriatric units will be created in selected community hospitals.
A multidisciplinary department of geriatrics will be established at an Ontario university as part of a major commitment to improve teaching in the area of geriatric care.
My government will also undertake efforts to assure the quality of life of nursing home residents and to support community organizations in the development of recreational services and activities for the retired.
Recognizing that even in a time of economic growth the needs of the less fortunate must be addressed, my government will launch a thorough review of Ontario's social assistance system to determine ways to combat poverty more effectively.
The review will examine the overall effectiveness of income support programs and assess their method of delivery, levels of assistance and flexibility to encourage and ease transition to the work force.
Because of the intergovernmental and financial implications of the delivery of social service programs, the Treasurer will pursue with the federal Minister of Finance and his provincial counterparts, issues arising from this review, including their impact on national income-support mechanisms.
3:40 p.m.
In the past year, my government has taken several steps to open the process of governing to greater public scrutiny and participation.
My government will continue to make appointments to agencies, boards and commissions that make those bodies representative of all groups in society and all walks of life.
Pour la première fois, les délibérations de l'Assemblée législative seront télévisées régulièrement et tous les Ontariens pourront observer le travail de leurs législateurs.
Changes in the rules of the Legislature will further open our debate and give individual members a greater opportunity to contribute their talents and views.
My government will introduce amendments to improve election expenses legislation.
A new policy will ensure fairness and impartiality in Liquor Control Board of Ontario hiring practices and Liquor Licensing Board of Ontario procedures. Hiring for liquor control board jobs will no longer be made by order-in-council appointment.
Government policies will continue to recognize the importance of the arts and the need for an arm's-length relationship with funded cultural groups.
My government will take further steps to ensure that all Ontarians are guaranteed their fundamental rights. A new policy on race relations and community harmony will be put in place. Efforts to promote employment equity will move forward. Legislation will be introduced to guarantee French-language services to meet the needs of francophones in this province.
In order to assist Ontario's native peoples to retain and strengthen their unique cultural heritage through economic development, my government will develop a native economic participation program to provide opportunity for native entrepreneurs.
My government will move ahead with plans to ensure enforcement of occupational health and safety standards in the work place.
Recognizing the increasing importance of child care facilities to families, new spaces will be created in child care programs in order to advance economic equity.
Steps will be taken to improve the public's access to the justice system, regardless of income, and assure speedy resolution of disputes.
My government is proud to have announced important steps to end the chronic underfunding of legal aid.
Interpreter services in courts will be increased to facilitate access by those whose mother tongue is neither English nor French.
Groups and individuals seeking to intervene in the public interest before administrative tribunals will be assisted.
Acting further in its commitment to justice, my government will propose a series of programs to assist the victim of crime and physical abuse, the forgotten person in the system. Victim assistance programs will be expanded to alleviate the suffering of battered women and children. Specialized staff in crown attorneys' offices will counsel and assist victims of such crimes as child abuse, rape and spousal assault.
Those who drink and drive will be vigorously prosecuted. Building on Ontario's record in traffic safety and efforts to combat drunk driving, funds will be provided to expand the Ontario Provincial Police reduce impaired driving everywhere program.
Economic changes have given rise to an increased need for government to update its policies to protect consumers. My government will review statutes and propose legislation to make them more sensitive to consumer needs and more adaptable to changing markets and new technologies.
Many Ontarians merit special acclaim. In order to provide deserved tribute, encourage volunteerism and reward participation and excellence, my government will establish a new award of the highest degree, to be known as the Order of Ontario. Ontario's highest commendation will accord recognition to Ontarians who demonstrate a high level of community leadership and meritorious service to the public.
Through the leadership and efforts of my ministers and through the work of the Legislature, we must seek to prepare this province for the 21st century.
Avec la volonté et dans l'esprit du peuple ontarien, nous devons parvenir à réaliser le progrès qui inspirera notre province et notre pays.
May Divine Providence attend your deliberations.
In our sovereign's name, I thank you. God bless the Queen and Canada.
The Honourable the Lieutenant Governor was pleased to retire from the chamber.
Prayers.
Mr. Speaker: To prevent mistakes, I have obtained a copy of His Honour's speech, which I shall now read. [Reading dispensed with.]
INTRODUCTION OF BILL
SUCCESSION LAW REFORM AMENDMENT ACT
Hon. Mr. Scott moved, seconded by Mr. Conway, first reading of Bill 1, An Act to amend the Succession Law Reform Act.
Motion agreed to.
MOTIONS
THRONE SPEECH DEBATE
Hon. Mr. Nixon moved that the speech of the Honourable the Lieutenant Governor be taken into consideration on Thursday next, April 24, 1986.
Motion agreed to.
PRIVATE MEMBERS' PUBLIC BUSINESS
Hon. Mr. Nixon moved that, notwithstanding standing order 64(a), private members' public business not be considered until the first Thursday following the completion of the debate on the address in reply to the speech from the throne. Motion agreed to.
HOUSE SITTING
Hon. Mr. Nixon moved that when the House adjourns today it stands adjourned until 2 p.m. on Thursday next, April 24.
Motion agreed to.
The House adjourned at 3:51 p.m.