NL NDP Leader Jim Dinn (St. John’s Centre) wrote Premier Tony Wakeham calling for clarification on the format of the House of Assembly Special Sitting debating the new Churchill Falls Definitive Cooperation and Implementation Agreement (DCIA). Concerned about the pattern of a lack of transparency around information pertaining to Churchill Falls, Dinn asked the Premier to also clarify who will be at the table.
“At this point, we would like to know the format of the debate. To debate the 2024 MOU, the House of Assembly was opened for four days in January 2025. Three of those days were taken up with questioning of the negotiating team, and officials from NL Hydro, JP Morgan, Power Advisory and others who were part of the negotiations, either directly or indirectly.
- Will the format be the same as the January 2025 debate; three days of expert testimony and answering questions followed by a debate?
- Who will be called to the chamber to answer questions from MHAs? We suggest: the Negotiating Team, NLH officials, members of the Independent Review Committee, expert consultants such as JP Morgan and other consultants who provided input.
- Will we be granted funding to engage our own experts to help analyse the deal as we were able to do with the last deal?
- Once a final definitive agreement is reached, will the HOA vote on it? This was a commitment from the previous administration.”
“Thank you for the briefing on the DCIA. I would like to make note that the DCIA was available on the Quebec Hydro website since the press conference on Monday, August 17 however we did not receive a copy of the 71-page document. Your team said it would be posted shortly. This was not a fulsome briefing and the DCIA has not been shared.”
“Transparency must be paramount. Any deal must benefit Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. We need to ask questions and receive the necessary information. If the House of Assembly is to open for a special debate, it is important that Members have access to all those involved directly or indirectly with negotiating the DCIA.”
The full letter is attached.