PC Party Nova Scotia

The Fall Session of the Legislature is going to wind down this week so I want to report to you in two stages on the activities of your PC Caucus. Today, I want to discuss how our Party has drawn some clear differences from the other Parties. When the Session officially ends, I will report to you on our own Legislative Agenda and some things.
 
1. First Contract Arbitration (FCA)
I suspect you have heard a lot about this NDP bill to impose contracts on Nova Scotia workplaces. Our position is that it is the wrong idea, at the wrong time, and for the wrong reasons. It is the wrong idea because free collective bargaining has served the province well. It is the wrong time because the economy is shaky and can't afford a hit like this, and it is for the wrong reasons because no one is asking for it, all employers (including Michelin, Sobeys, etc) oppose it, but clearly the NDPs backroom supporters want it.
 
The PC Caucus led the charge against FCA in the House. We filibustered. We spoke against at length, we used procedural motions to delay it, and so on. I am pleased to tell you that our Caucus managed to drag debate on FCA out for over 3 weeks!
 
We stood on principle that this is a bad idea. The NDP were determined to push it through regardless of the opposition, and in the end, did so. The Liberals, interestingly, said they were against but were prepared to "compromise" with the NDP, and if they had succeeded, would have ended up voting for some form of FCA. As I said in the Legislature, there is a time to compromise, and there is a time to stand firm on principle. This was a time to stand firm, and we did. Someday it will fall to us as a PC government to clean this mess up!
 
2. MLA Pensions
Yesterday, near the end of the Session, the NDP finally brought in their Bill on MLA Pension Reform. They accepted the Pension Panel recommendations, for the most part. The Liberals clearly supported passing the Pension Panel recommendations in full.
 
The PC Party position is very different from the other two Parties:
 
- first, we were the ones that insisted on an independent review, free of MLA involvement. You may recall that I called for an independent review at our Party's AGM last February.
 
- second, when the Panel reported back last month, only the PC Party stood up and said that enabling MLAs to be eligible for a pension after 2 years was wrong, and we would oppose that. This particular recommendation is removed in the new Bill, which is a nice victory for us, and more importantly, for NS taxpayers.
 
- third, both other Parties clearly are now content and want to move on. That is not my view. As I hope you have seen, I believe that the Panel Report should have proposed a dollar-for-dollar matching plan that is similar to those pension plans of other Nova Scotians. It didn't. The NDP and Liberals are fine with that. The PC Party has now put forward a new idea to determine MLA pensions in the future and I am very pleased that we have drawn this distinction from the other Parties.
 
The NDPs MLA pension Bill will pass this week, likely faster than normal, as oddly the NDP will take time on the Liberals Opposition Day today (Wednesday) to help speed it through. Although the Bill does contain some reductions to the MLA Pension Bill, it will be up to both other Parties to explain why they are now satisfied. We certainly are glad the Bill makes some reductions, and took out the 2-year eligibility idea, but other than that we have staked out different ground from the other 2 Parties.
 
Thank you for taking the time to read this message. It has been a very busy Fall, particularly with the extended House Session. Once the House concludes, I will be providing further information on our work on your behalf, and on behalf of all Nova Scotians.
 
Jamie