Thursday, March 16, 1967 latiea in a threatening way. They threatened to send the Mounted Police to Borden; it is • good job they didn't go up because I am afraid that that situation there was tinged with a lot of danger. Now a new boat will not now be ready until 1968. How our Government got a lambasting for the delay in getting the boats in operation. Now the old boats are there — still older — we don't hear anything about it. The only report we get is that the new boat will not be ready until possibly late in 1968, and in the meantime, this province is in a very critical condition if we run across a serious ice-winter. I notice too we are told of a great number of jobs that are going to K» pro¬ vided on this Causeway. How can there be jobs if there are no contracts? I men¬ tioned already that New Brunswick gets $16,000,000.00 appropriation and we have one. We were told recently by the Premier that an engineer drew plans for the Causeway, and those plans were to be studied by the engineers in the Public Works Department of this province by the way. I have no reflection on the ability of the engineers in the provincial government, but this brilliant idea that a plan from an engineer, whom I believe is a good engineer, should be held up until our provincial engineers study it and then be transferred on to the proper authorities at Ottawa is just too ridiculous to merit very much comment. For three years some of the most brilliant engineers in the Continent made a thorough and detailed study of the con¬ ditions surrounding construction of the Causeway. They completed that report and their report was presented to Ottawa and Ottawa accepted their report. As I say, I have no criticism in his ability as an engineer, but why was not this report pre¬ sented to the federal authorities two years ago while investigations were being con¬ ducted? In the second place why was it presented or accepted by the provincial government for that Una of a study? If the Premier had consulted with his depart¬ mental officials he would know that the provincial government was ignored and had no pert in these investigations. It was a federal responsibility and conducted strictly on that level. The Premier, ordered to bring the previous government under sus¬ picion, states that McCulktugh had presented a report to the provincial government and H was ignored. That statement is not correct. I understand a copy of a report presented for departmental files but as that department and our engineers were Ignored in the investigations it had no authority whatsoever to take action. This engineer was no doubt directed to federal authorities. The Premier should have done the same thing and not cause any delay in studying this latest report which would delay the construction of the Causeway for possibly a year or two longer and would take a highly qualified provincial engineer a very long time to study. This decision n the part of the government of this province is very definitely the result of weak, thinking and if acted upon cannot do other than to delay the construction of the Causeway. Now, Mr. Speaker , I would like to go on from there and say something to you regard to finances. We are told that the financial position of this province is not The next big problem that faced this government was the conference at Ot- ra. Here indeed was « great opportunity for the Government, two Governments line, a Premier who boasted that all that is necessary was to have his magic touch t Ottawa. Did he not tell us that that would settle it? There were millions at Ottawa, he said, that were available to this province if a proper approach were made. ~e told us that we were not getting something from Ottawa because we were too ostOe and rude to the Ottawa officials. He led that famous delegation, to Ottawa ;arbed in straw hats and bedraggled roosters, and for good measure he almost choked with emotion as he placed a crown of olives on the head of the Government that had icked virtually the representations of this Island out through the conference window mong the skunks which the Premier seemed to have so distinctly in his mind at that tune. Surely this was the time to secure recognition at the federal level. This was he most important conference, possibly, that has been held in my experience. This conference was arranged and projected by the federal government, this was the con¬ ference that was supposed to satisfy and satisfactorily settle our affairs, one that vas arranged and projected in that way. We were asked and urged to make an exhaustive examination of the tax question and the needs of the province and to confer with the federal tax foundation from time to time. We were all tremendously optimistic that this was the time at last for our province to secure those rights to hkh it was entitled. So exhaustive studies were made in this province. My honour-