Greatest Misses, Vol. I

From the pages of the 2003 edition of the "Bluesheet" — oh, how tempting it is to make a pun with a near-homonym of that word — some of Danny Williams' deeply-held beliefs and fondest ambitions that didn't quite see the light of day. Emphasis added throughout:

Consistent with our energy policy objectives, a Progressive Conservative government will make use of the hydroelectric potential of the Lower Churchill and any electricity that can be recalled or reclaimed from the Upper Churchill to accomplish the following priorities:

• Promote industrial development and meet domestic energy demand in Labrador and then on the Island of Newfoundland.

In order to stabilize government's fiscal position, a Progressive Conservative government proposes the following policies:

• Keeping real program spending constant by limiting the annual growth in spending to the anticipated growth in inflation. New needs that arise will be accommodated within this budget constraint.

In order to stabilize government's fiscal position, a Progressive Conservative government proposes the following policies:

• Approximately 40% of all government expenditures goes towards salaries and employee benefits. Over the next five years, approximately 25% of the public service will be eligible for retirement. A Progressive Conservative government will use this five-year period to reduce the size of the public sector through attrition.

During its first mandate, a Progressive Conservative government will make it illegal for government to spend money without prior legislative approval when the House of Assembly is in session, and restrict spending by Special Warrant to a specific emergency that occurs when the House is not in session.

We will restore a significant, independent role to the House of Assembly through:

• The election of an independent speaker, who will not sit in a caucus or be eligible for a cabinet appointment during the term of a legislature over which he or she presides.

To encourage more people, particularly persons with family responsibilities, to run for election to the House of Assembly, a Progressive Conservative government will:

• Ask the legislature to adopt family friendly election timetables and work schedules, so that Members can combine their work more easily with family and childcare responsibilities. This will involve a fixed legislative calendar with fixed sittings and adjournments dates, an end to legislation by attrition, a fixed budget day, and workable time lines that ensure a proper balance between Members' responsibilities to the legislature, their constituents, and their families. [Ah, so that's why the House never sits... they are being "family friendly" — ed.]

Committees will be expected to meet regularly outside St. John's to provide better access to the general public and to encourage greater participation by individuals and groups. [What's a "committee"? — ed.]

A Progressive Conservative government will take the following actions to close those loopholes:

• Legislate contribution and spending limits for Party leadership contests and nominees in Party candidacy races. [Surely such rules will be legislated before the PC leadership gets under way — ed.]
• Require full disclosure of contributions and expenditures in party nomination contests and elections.
• Require disclosure of contributions to leadership campaigns as they occur and disclosure of independently audited expenses within three months after the election of a new leader.

A Progressive Conservative government will propose amendments to the Elections Act and other relevant acts that will:

• Set and publish content rules for government advertising that will stop the use of public funds for political advertising.

A Progressive Conservative government will:

• Proclaim new Freedom of Information legislation which will include amendments that will clearly identify information that should be in the public domain, including cabinet documents, and will require full and prompt disclosure of the information to the public.
• Release to the public every government-commissioned report within 30 days of receiving it, indicate the action government will take on a report's recommendations within 60 days, and ensure prompt public access to all government reports in hard copy and on the Internet.