SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Nova Scotia Power customers are dealing with yet another power rate increase of 2.4 per cent. Across this province, Nova Scotians are finding it increasingly difficult to afford housing, food, and other essentials, and now they have to deal with yet another price increase. My question is for the Minister of Energy: Why isn't the government doing more to help Nova Scotians who are struggling to keep the lights on?
HON. TREVOR BOUDREAU: We know that when energy bills or power bills come in and Nova Scotians see a rise, they have concerns, and it's a challenge for people, and we recognize that, and as a government, we've taken some significant investments to make sure that we support Nova Scotians. There was a report last week that said there was a 2.4 per cent increase that happened through Nova Scotia Power, and I just want to read from that, and I'll table this, but we provided a bailout. We negotiated a $500 million loan guarantee from the federal government to support Nova Scotians, and without that bailout, the utility said it would have raised average rates 19.2 per cent this year, not 2.4.
SUSAN LEBLANC « » : Well, I'm glad the minister understands that it is a struggle for many, many Nova Scotians to pay their power bills. I have an idea. It's not mine, actually. The province is one of the provinces with the highest rate of energy poverty, but the Energy Poverty Task Force has laid out a plan to address the issue. We don't need to continually get bailouts. We have another idea: The plan includes an arrears forgiveness program and rate discounts for lower-income Nova Scotians, among other things. In case a reminder is needed, the department received this task force recommendation in April of last year. Why hasn't the government implemented the recommendations to help lift more Nova Scotians out of energy poverty?
TREVOR BOUDREAU: We've created a number of different programs to support Nova Scotians and ratepayers here in Nova Scotia to support them with their challenges with their energy bills. I can think of the HARP program, $600 a year to support Nova Scotians. I think of the HEAT Fund, again to support Nova Scotians who are struggling with energy poverty. I think of the Seniors Care Grant - $750 a year - and I think of the investments in this budget to reduce taxes, to put more money in people's pockets, to support Nova Scotians when these are challenging times that they face.