Province Législature Session Type de discours Date du discours Locuteur Fonction du locuteur Parti politique Manitoba 27e 1ère Discours du trône 28 février 1963 Errick F. Willis Lieutenant-gouverneur PC Madam Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba: I have pleasure in welcoming you to the first session of the 27th Legislature of the Province of Manitoba. As this session inaugurates a new parliament, I am sure that the people of the province can look forward with confidence to the constructive efforts of all Members of the Legislature in advancing the welfare of Manitoba. Nineteen sixty two was one of the best years in our economic history. My Ministers inform me that records were broken in the fields of trade, farming, mining, tourism, employment, hydro-electric consumption, and other important indices of activity. It is their opinion that 1963 will present an opportunity for continued good progress. The government of Manitoba bas received an invitation from the Government of Canada to attend a conference to discuss biculturism and other questions pertaining to the Canadian Confederation. My Ministers have indicated their desire to accept this invitation in the conviction that from the developing and harmonious history of biculturism in our own province we may be able to make a constructive contribution to the unity of the nation. I am informed that the Committee on Manitoba's Economic Future is concluding its study of ways and means of accelerating growth and providing employment for citizens of Manitoba, and it is expected that its report will be laid before you in the near future for your consideration. My Ministers are grateful for the enthusiastic and constructive response of so many leading citizens in all walks of life who are contributing to this unique and important investigation. The goal of my government's economic policy is to achieve a rate of growth sufficient to provide of opportunities and increase the standards of living for our people. In this task the co-operation of all sections of society is essential. My Ministers propose to recommend legislation providing for the constitution of an Economic Consultative Board to assist the government in carrying on the work of the Committee on Manitoba's Economic Future and in planning our economic path over the years ahead. In order to provide complementary means to facilitate our industrial growth, my Ministers will also propose the establishment of a number of new agencies and programs that will assist in speeding the expansion of Manitoba industries, with special emphasis on those using our own primary products. These will include the Manitoba Research Council, a product development fund, the Manitoba Design Institute, and the Manitoba Export Corporation, all of which are designed to assist in the development of industrial enterprise and employment in the province. A report of the recent Manitoba trade mission which visited the United Kingdom will be laid before you shortly. My Ministers propose to sponsor a similar mission to the United States in the coming year. My Ministers believe that the growth and development of the beef cattle industry in Manitoba represents a very important opportunity for growth in the agricultural sector. To assist this aim you will be asked to amend The Manitoba Agricultural Credit Act to provide for the granting of loans to beef cattle producers and to make provision for the capital moneys required for this program. Further steps to promote the livestock industry will be proposed, including the appointment of a provincial veterinarian and the establishment of six new community pastures. My Ministers will also propose a new policy to promote the production of purebred swine and to provide for the initiation of an elite swine breeding program. Funds will also be sought to assist the establishment of a soil testing service for farmers. The crop insurance program, which has already proved its worth, will be extended to include a new district during the coming year. I am informed that the increased use of chemical pesticides, although advantageous from many points of view, has raised the question of safety and control. Legislation to deal with this question will be laid before you. My government has entered into a general agreement with the Government of Canada for joint programs under The Agricultural Rehabilitation and Development Act. You will be asked to provide funds for the implementation of several projects of research, land use and water control. My ministers state that the construction of the Red River Floodway is proceeding favourably and you will be asked to provide funds to finance its continuation as well as to make provision for associated projects on the Assiniboine watershed. The Manitoba Water Supply Board undertook water supply and treatment works for six towns and villages during the current year, and a measure will be placed before you to provide additional funds to meet the continuing demand for this service. My Ministers will request that once again a substantial increase in funds be provided for the support of the educational system of the province. A large increase will be recommended for vocational art technical education, and you will also be asked to supply funds for the phased construction of new institutes at The Pas and Brandon. Classes in pre-vocational training, designed to prepare unemployed persons for education in trade or technical skills, will be extended: the new classes will be instituted at such places as Flin Flon, The Pas, Dauphin and Gimli in addition to those in Greater Winnipeg and Brandon. You will be asked to give consideration to legislation providing for the new Manitoba Teachers' Retirement Allowances plan. I am also informed that legislation will be placed before you to provide for operating support grants to colleges affiliated to the University of Manitoba. Legislation will also be submitted to raise the school leaving age. My Ministers report that the reorganization of the Advisory Board under The Department of Education Act has been carried out and that special provision will be recommended to assist and expedite the matter of curriculum revision. Substantial increases will be recommended by my Ministers for the support of the University of Manitoba including the construction or completion of new residences, library arts, science, medical and athletic facilities. My Ministers are pleased to announce that as a result of negotiations with the federal government, a special research and training centre dealing with congenital malformations in infants and children will be established here in the coming year. You will also be asked to make financial provision for modern cottage type facilities for the rehabilitation of boys at the Manitoba School for Mentally Defective Persons at Portage la Prairie. Additional appropriations will be sought by my Ministers to improve rehabilitation programs in respect to the physically handicapped. New agreements with the federal government will also make possible the development of a comprehensive vocational rehabilitation program for adults. A new facility for the Society for Crippled Children and Adults is also being provided in the coming year. My Ministers report that the developments in the field of psychiatry give cause for satisfaction. You will be asked to provide funds for expansion of community mental health programs, out-patient services in our mental hospitals and more intensive therapy for inpatients. You will also be asked to approve an appropriation for the expansion of the St. Amant ward for children and also for increased support for the care and maintenance of the mentally retarded outside institutions. The first report of the Manitoba Hospital Commission will be placed before you soon. My Ministers report that construction programs are currently under way in eight institutions while another 18 projects are expected to begin in the coming year. My Ministers state that the Cancer Treatment and Research Centre will be completed in the coming year and that this institution, combined with the cytology screening service, will markedly improve the cancer radiation and diagnostic facilities available to Manitobans. My Ministers note with concern the human and financial problems being experienced in connection with welfare recipients, particularly in respect of the able-bodied. You will be asked to approve the operation of a new agency designed to bring together the various rehabilitation services concerned with this problem. In this connection government and welfare agencies at present operating in the Jarvis-Salbr Street redevelopment area, including child guidance, probation, marriage counselling and other social welfare aids will be concentrated as a single task force to carry out a preventive program as well as to assist their clients in returning to a productive role in society. In addition a pilot project will apply a community development approach to this urban area where it is regarded as an essential complement to the urban renewal and redevelopment projects now under way. The Community development program for Indians and Métis will be recommended for further expansion. My Ministers will propose amendments to The Child Welfare Act to invoke the assistance of the courts in dealing with the question of adoption and religious faith. You will be asked to consider a system of grants under the physical fitness and amateur sport policy. Legislation will also be presented to enable municipal authorities to undertake low cost housing by means of the limited dividend housing plan. This will include a measure of provincial assistance. Agreements have been entered into with the Government of Canada and with the City of Winnipeg for the first low rental housing project in the province: this is linked with the Jarvis-Salter urban renewal scheme in which the province has agreed to participate on equal terms with the City of Winnipeg. Contracts for the Burrows-Keewatir housing project have been signed, and this joint effort by the province, the City of Winnipeg, and the national government is under way. My Ministers are satisfied that you will give your support to these forward looking projects. The program for the expansion and improvement of public recreational resources will he continued and you will be asked to provide additional funds for these widely approved purposes. The beneficial utilization of the fishery resources of our province continues to concern my Ministers. They will propose that funds be provided to assist in the development of a rough fish processing plant to provide a valuable source of animal food and to supply a market for less valuable species of fish now being wasted in the industry. A further program of investigation into the mineral resources of northern Manitoba will also be included in my Ministers proposals. During the course of the session you will be asked to provide further large appropriations for the construction and reconstruction of the highway system of Manitoba. In particular approval will be sought for the acceleration of the construction program in northern Manitoba to link the town of Thompson to the rest of our province. Capital moneys will be requested by my government to provide for the St. James bridge Portage Avenue underpass, the Winnipeg St. Vital Red River bridge, as well as for the construction of a new bridge as part of the north perimeter system in metropolitan Winnipeg. My Ministers recommend that the policy of providing grants-in-aid for the building and maintenance of school bus routes, heretofore limited, now be extended to all school division bus routes on a 60-40 basis. In addition my government proposes that the assistance to municipalities for snow plowing purposes be doubled over present limits. During the year the Workmen's Compensation Board assisted in special studies in the field of rehabilitation of injured workmen. In line with this increasing activity you will be asked to augment substantially the size of the rehabilitation fund. My Ministers also report that an inquiry committee has recently been convened to consider particular problems of labour management relations and employment standards in the construction industry. Representatives of management, labour and government will direct their attention to the solution of current and anticipated problems in this area. Further improvements are reported by my Ministers in the provincial correction program during the past year. While studies are proceeding with a view to a complete recasting of the present system of administration, you will in the meanwhile be asked to approve expenditures for an extension of the important rehabilitation work of the probation and parole branch. Legislation with respect to the Judicial Boundaries Commission designed to improve the administration of justice in the province will be submitted for your consideration. You will as well be asked to approve certain remedial amendments to The Time Sale Agreement Act intended to improve the mechanics of its operation. A measure to provide for uniform time will be proposed by my Ministers. My Ministers state that a reciprocal trucking agreement has been completed with the province of Ontario, representing a substantial saving in fees for the trucking industry. Similar agreements are now being negotiated with Saskatchewan and Alberta. Electric power usage is reported by my Ministers to have shown the largest increase un record during the calendar year 1962. This growth rate emphasizes the importance of my government's hydro-electric production policy by which it is expected that power will become available from the Grand Rapids project in the latter part of 1965 in good time to meet our needs. As announced by my ministers recently, the Manitoba Hydro has conducted preliminary surveys of the Nelson River. Agreement has now been reached with the Government of Canada on studies of the Nelson power potential in relation to the possible supply of power to markets outside the province, as well as for use within the province. Under this arrangement the cost of financing the site and market studies is being shared on a 50/50 basis between the Government of Canada and the province of Manitoba. I am informed as well that additional large sums will be sought for the Manitoba Telephone System to finance further expansion of its facilities. In the past five years 16, 600 subscribers have been converted from manual to dial service with the installation of 35 automatic exchanges at a cost of over $8 million. This program, combined with the party line improvement plans, will be continued during the coming year. Since the House met last year two important steps have been taken in the field of municipal government. The Metropolitan Review Commission under the chairmanship of Dr. Lorne E. Cumming has been appointed to study the development of metropolitan government in Winnipeg and recommend such changes as may be necessary and desirable. A royal commission under the chairmanship of the Honourable Roland Michener has also recently been appointed to consider and recommend on the problems of finance and organization of local government in the province. It is anticipated that both these bodies will contribute greatly to the improvement of municipal government in Manitoba. A legislative measure will be placed before you respecting the celebration and commemoration of our national centennial in 1967 and our provincial centennial in 1970. A major feature of the proposal will be the creation of a provincial arts centre in the capital of the province, while at the same time suitable projects in other parts of the province will be studied. You will be asked to make provision for a general increase in civil service salaries. Estimates for the requirements of the public service of the province for the next fiscal year and the accounts for the last fiscal year will be submitted for your consideration. In leaving, you I pray that you may have the guidance of Divine Providence in your deliberations.