The Nova Scotia government passed its budget bill Wednesday afternoon with the public barred from watching inside the legislature and the premier and finance minister absent for the vote.
The third reading of the Appropriations Act was called shortly after the sitting opened for the day. It was essentially a do-over after a crowd in the gallery late Tuesday night prevented the vote when they broke out in song to protest, leading Speaker Danielle Barkhouse to adjourn business for the night.
With a small group of protesters chanting outside on the sidewalk Wednesday — some of whom threw snowballs at the building — the Progressive Conservatives used their majority to pass the budget with only staff and reporters permitted to watch from the gallery.
All opposition members, including the two Independent MLAs, voted against the bill. Premier Tim Houston was not present, nor was Finance Minister John Lohr.
Houston is in Texas attending an oil and gas conference. Lohr was at a meeting and not in the chamber at the time MLAs voted.
“I will make sure I’m there at every future vote,” Lohr told reporters.
“I support the budget.”
Take a sober second tought
NDP Leader Claudia Chender was critical of the government’s decision to pass the budget in the face of stiff public scrutiny.
“I think Nova Scotians have been crystal clear that this is not a budget that meets the moment,” she told reporters.
“There’s still an option for the government to take a sober second thought.”
Government House leader Brendan Maguire told reporters that he understands some people are frustrated with cuts in the budget, but there was never a plan to halt the process.
“I understand that no budget is easy or perfect, but there are a lot of things in that budget that are very good for Nova Scotians and we needed to pass it.”
Maguire also missed the vote Wednesday. He said he was dealing with a safety issue as part of his job as House leader for the Progressive Conservative caucus.
Province House closed to the public
Barkhouse announced earlier Wednesday that the legislature would be closed to the public in light of Tuesday’s events and other instances that she said have left some MLAs and staff feeling unsafe both inside and outside Province House, where MLAs “have been targeted solely to frighten, threaten or intimidate them.”
The plan is to be reviewed Friday and Barkhouse said security would be stepped up at the legislature.
Danielle Barkhouse, Nova Scotia’s Speaker of the House, said the “actions of a few have spoiled it for many.”
“This is unacceptable,” Barkhouse said above the sound of protesters chanting on the streets outside the locked gates of the House.
“Every Nova Scotian must be safe in their workplaces. This is non-negotiable.”
It ’s the second time Barkhouse has put in place restrictions during this session.
Earlier this month, Barkhouse restricted the public from some areas of the legislature, including the library, the red room and the entrance to the legislative chamber.
At the time, the Speaker said the change was not linked to any single incident, although it came a day after a group of people had an exchange with African Nova Scotian Affairs Minister Twila Grosse.
That group voiced concerns about proposed cuts in the budget that would affect scholarship programs for Black and African Nova Scotian students.
MLA Iain Rankin, interim leader of the Liberals, said closing Province House to the public is not something he has seen before.
“We’ve had some controversial decisions in this House, we’ve had some challenging budgets during fiscal restraint, and we haven’t seen a time like this where Nova Scotians are told no and the gate is locked,” said Rankin.
The government’s budget has proved controversial since it was tabled on Feb. 23.
While the government has touted spending increases across departments to the tune of 7.7 per cent, with an emphasis on health care, nursing homes and housing, cuts in the budget have dominated the public’s attention.
The budget included $304 million in cuts to jobs, programs and grants, the first in a four-year sustainability plan that calls for even steeper cuts in each of the subsequent years.
Following several weeks of pushback, the premier announced that his government would reverse $53.6 million in cuts that included nursing home jobs, services for seniors and people with disabilities, and educational opportunities aimed at African Nova Scotian and Mi’kmaw students.
Cuts to the arts and culture sector, which have drawn some of the most vocal protests, have not been reversed.
Opposition members have expressed concerns about what the cuts to the sector could mean for jobs and the economy at a time when the province is facing a deficit of more than $1.2 billion.
Lohr and Houston have refused to say if an economic impact analysis of the cuts was conducted before the budget was finalized.
Passage of the Nova Scotia government’s budget bill stalled late Tuesday night when a group of singing protesters shut down the final vote to approve the budget.
Province House last shut down in 1994
The last time Province House was shut down by a protest was on April 29, 1994, according to the legislature library. That’s when hundreds of angry construction workers took over the place to oppose legislation that would allow unionized and non-unionized workers on the same job site.
According to the library, the gallery and Province House were closed that day, a Friday. When the House sat again the following Monday, the public was present in the gallery, the library said in an email. Staff said this is the most comparable example it could find of the House being closed to the public.
A news release said the proceedings of all committees, including the public bills committee, will be closed to visitors this week. In addition to staff and media, only scheduled presenters will be permitted to attend committee meetings.
All proceedings of committees and the House can be viewed through Legislative Television.
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