Questions and responses 45th Parliament, 1st session May 26, 2025, to present

With regard to the government's February 22, 2023, announcement of up to $94 million to bring high-speed Internet to more than 36,000 homes in Newfoundland and Labrador: (a) what was the total amount of funding approved for each project under this announcement, broken down by Internet service provider, namely (i) Bell Canada, (ii) Xplore Inc. (formerly Xplornet), (iii) any other service providers that received funding; (b) for each project in (a), what were the expected deliverables at the time of approval, including the number of households to be connected, the technology to be used, and the anticipated service speeds; (c) for each community listed under the February 2023 announcement, what amount of funding was planned to be allocated to that community, broken down by the (i) assigned service provider, (ii) number of households expected to benefit, (iii) estimated per-household cost used in the project model; (d) what accountability mechanisms were established to ensure providers met their obligations, including (i) reporting requirements, (ii) progress benchmarks, (iii) compliance or performance conditions tied to the release of funds, (iv) any provisions related to project delays, scope changes, or service withdrawal; (e) as of the date of this question, for each project listed in (a), what is the current status of (i) funds disbursed, (ii) households connected, (iii) communities fully completed, (iv) communities still awaiting service, (v) any outstanding commitments from the providers; (f) since the original announcement, have any changes been made to (i) provider assignments for any communities, (ii) the total planned funding envelope for any project, (iii) the construction or deployment timeline, (iv) the total number of communities or households expected to be served, and, if so, what is the rationale for each change; and (g) for any project where a service provider has withdrawn, reduced its scope, or advised the government of concerns (such as cost escalation or feasibility challenges), what are the details of each, and what actions has the government taken to ensure affected communities will still receive service, including whether alternative providers have been engaged or funding reallocated?

With regard to the proposed national marine conservation area in the South Coast Fjords study area of the southwest coast of Newfoundland by Environment and Climate Change Canada and Parks Canada: (a) what is the current size, in square kilometers, of the study area under consideration, and how does that compare to the original size of 9,114 km as first publicly announced; (b) what is the current status of the feasibility assessment (including community, Indigenous consultation, etc.), including how many coastal communities have been engaged to date; (c) what is the timeline for (i) boundary decisions, (ii) the establishment of an agreement, (iii) public comment; (d) what protections, regulations, or "full protection zones" (such as no-fishing zones, bottom-trawling exclusions, etc.) are currently (i) proposed, (ii) under consideration, within the study area; (e) for each item in (d), what economic impacts have been assessed for (i) local fishing, (ii) commercial fishing, (iii) aquaculture, (iv) tourism, (v) coastal community employment by the agency, (vi) mining, (vii) potential deep-water ports for mining and shipping; (f) what is the total estimated cost of the government completing the establishment process (feasibility, designation, management planning, etc.) for the proposed South Coast Fjords National Marine Conservation Area; (g) what annual budget is projected for managing the area, if designated, (including enforcement, monitoring, Indigenous partnerships, community engagement, visitor infrastructure, etc.); (h) how will the government and Parks Canada ensure that the interests of local Indigenous peoples (including the Miawpukek First Nation and Quipu First Nation) and coastal communities in the Long Range Mountains riding are fully integrated into the (i) governance, (ii) monitoring, (iii) economic benefit-sharing, of the proposed National Marine Conservation Area; (i) upon approval, which department, Crown corporation or agency will be responsible for regulating fishing within the National Marine Conservation Area; (j) what are the projected impacts of these regulations for local industries (commercial fishing, shipping, etc.); and (k) what will the role of (i) Parks Canada, (ii) Environment and Climate Change Canada, (iii) Fisheries and Oceans Canada, be within the National Marine Conservation Area and in the regulation of the National Marine Conservation Area?

With regard to access to safe drinking water in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, federal infrastructure investments in the riding of Long Range Mountains, and Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations: (a) how many communities in Newfoundland and Labrador are currently under boil water advisories; (b) what are the names and federal ridings of communities in Newfoundland and Labrador under a boil water advisory and how long has the advisory been in place; (c) what specific federal funding programs are currently available to assist rural Newfoundland and Labrador communities in upgrading aging water systems; (d) how much federal funding has been allocated to water infrastructure projects in Newfoundland and Labrador since 2020, broken down by (i) year, (ii) project; (e) has the government assessed the public health or economic impacts of persistent boil water advisories in rural Newfoundland and Labrador communities, and, if so, what were the findings; (f) what is the government doing to ensure Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in rural and coastal Newfoundland and Labrador have equitable access to safe drinking water; (g) broken down by community and project, how much federal funding, and from which specific funding sources, has been allocated to (i) water, (ii) wastewater, infrastructure projects in the riding of Long Range Mountains since 2020; (h) what support is available for smaller towns, villages, or communities in Long Range Mountains that lack a tax base or technical expertise to apply for federal infrastructure funding; (i) is the government currently considering any policy changes to streamline infrastructure application processes for rural communities with limited administrative capacity; (j) how many and which municipalities in Newfoundland and Labrador are currently non-compliant with Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations, and what are the reasons for non-compliance; (k) how many and which of the non-compliant municipalities have received Transitional Authorizations, and what supports are in place to help them meet federal compliance; (I) what is the projected cost to bring all non-compliant municipalities in Newfoundland and Labrador into compliance, and what proportion of that cost will be covered by federal programs; and (m) has the government conducted any infrastructure readiness assessments in Newfoundland and Labrador municipalities to determine funding and technical support needs for wastewater upgrades, and, if so, what were the results of the assessments?

With regard to Fisheries and Oceans Canada's management of fisheries in Newfoundland and Labrador: (a) broken down by year, since January 1, 2016, what scientific stock assessments have been completed on (i) northern cod, (ii) snow crab, (iii) capelin, and what were the key findings of each assessment; (b) what is the current federal rebuilding plan for northern cod, including any projected timelines for stock recovery; (c) for each of the last five years, what are the details, including the date, type, topic, and consultee, for each consultation conducted with (i) inshore harvesters, (ii) Indigenous groups, (iii) industry stakeholders, (iv) other groups, in Newfoundland and Labrador and what were the outcomes of those consultations; and (d) what federal funding has been allocated, since January 1, 2016, to support (i) stock rebuilding efforts, (ii) harvester livelihoods during quota reductions in Newfoundland and Labrador, broken down by year and by program?

With regard to the government's role in offshore oil and gas development and related industrial facilities in Newfoundland and Labrador: (a) how many proposals for offshore oil and gas projects (i) have been received, (ii) have been approved, (iii) have been denied, (iv) are still awaiting a decision, (v) are delayed, (vi) have been cancelled, since November 4, 2015; (b) what are the details of each proposal in (a), including, for each, the (i) date received, (ii) date of the decision, (iii) current status, (iv) project scope and description, (v) location; (c) what is the total amount of federal funding provided to support offshore oil and gas development, since January 1, 2016, and broken down by year, program and type of funding; (d) what are the details, including the dates, type of assessments, and findings, of all assessments the government has conducted since November 4, 2015 regarding the economic and employment impact of idle fabrication yards and construction sites in Newfoundland and Labrador, including, but not limited to, the Bull Arm site; and (e) what future federal investment is planned to maintain, redevelop, or repurpose these facilities in the province?