'It's going to be terrible': Pending 'job crisis' dominates debate in House of Assembly

A forecast that could see Newfoundland and Labrador's unemployment rate skyrocket to 20 per cent could set the province back 50 years, says NDP MHA Lorraine Michael.

"It's going to be terrible to get to that point," Michael said outside the provincial legislature in St. John's Monday, on the opening day of the fall sitting of the House of Assembly.

"I call it a crisis when it comes to job opportunities for young people and job loss for older people," she added.

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PC Leader Paul Davis was stuck for words to describe what such a scenario might mean for the province.

"I don't know if I can. I really don't know if I can," Davis stated.

The province's unemployment rate is currently hovering around 13 per cent, but the Liberal government forecasted this past spring that the rate will surge to 19.5 per cent within four years, driven largely in a slowdown in major project spending.

The Liberals recently released its Way Forward strategy for dealing with the province's fragile economy.

The document sets out a strategy to return the province to surplus within seven years, create an efficient and effective government, invest in education and infrastructure, and lay the groundwork for economic development in areas such as agriculture, aquaculture and forest resources.

The Tories and the NDP wanted to hear some concrete plans for job creation, but say their questions went unanswered Monday.

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"Where is government providing confidence to business that there's a good future for them?" Davis said to reporters. "And even in their tone and in their delivery, does not give anyone confidence in the future of the province."

Disappearing jobs

Michael she she was "shocked" by a recent Statistics Canada update revealing that 6,000-plus jobs disappeared from the province last month.

She said it's the No. 1 issue facing the province, and that Premier Dwight Ball doesn't seem to recognize it. She says people need to brace for some hard times.

"I certainly feel it from the people in the province," she said.

The premier, meanwhile, defended the strategy.

"There's quite a few initiatives within the Way Forward vision statement that speaks to putting in place the environment where we can get economic diversification and create jobs for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians," he told reporters.

Ball said it's vital that his government, coming off the largest deficit in the province's history, is able to stabilize the financial situation.

He said his government is working towards that goal, but he acknowledged there are challenging times ahead.

"I'm very concerned about that," he said of the forecasted surge in unemployment.

However the premier cautioned against the urge to "borrow our way through all of this."

"We have to have government services that are efficient and responsive and affordable," he said.