Mr. Speaker, the people of the Halifax regional municipality and all Nova Scotians deserve to know what plans are in the works for the Shearwater Canadian forces base.
I am becoming increasingly concerned about the past operations of Shearwater Development Corporation Limited and am equally concerned about what the future holds. Underscoring both these issues is a sense that this Liberal government is not willing to be entirely open with the people who will be affected by whatever decisions are made.
Shearwater Development Corporation Limited was created in response to the 1994 federal budget when it became clear that operations at Shearwater would be reduced. Now we have Frontec Corporation suing Shearwater for over $663,000 for services and products.
Exactly what did Shearwater Development Corporation do for the past half decade and, in particular, what has happened to the $2.6 billion in taxpayer money invested in the Shearwater Development Corporation?
The people of the Halifax-Dartmouth area deserve full and fair accounting of just what this corporation did over the past five years and how their money was spent. How many jobs were created? What long term projects were crafted and developed?
The people of the Halifax regional municipality also deserve to know what the long range plans for Shearwater are. Will the military keep the shoreline property? How many jobs will be lost? What is the long term plan and use of both the base and the valuable lands on which it rests?
In response to my question in the House on November 18, 1998, the Minister of National Defence stated that the federal government would bring about an outcome where the lands would be used for the benefit of the people of the province and to create economic development opportunities so that jobs can be created. That is what the minister said in the House.
Will the people of the region have a say or will this just be one more deal made between the federal and provincial Liberals, behind closed doors, without the full and constructive input of the people whose lives will affected by the decisions made?