This week in the HoA, NDP leader Gerry Rogers questioned government’s “persistent giveaways to large corporations.”

She pointed out, for instance, that Canopy Growth, the largest cannabis producer in the world, will get to keep up to $40 million in withheld remittances from the provincial government.

“That’s money that government won’t have for schools, roads, and health care,” Rogers said in Question Period. “I ask the Minister, what will he do concretely to support our own local producers who are working hard to establish similar businesses around the province?”

Other recent “giveaways” to large corporations she cited were $45 million to Grieg Aquaculture and $1 million to S&P Data, which give a leg-up to non-local companies here, to create relatively low-paying jobs. She asked the Premier if this was his idea of economic development.

She also questioned why government has given a $1 million contract to the international firm McKinsey & Company in hopes of advancing the economic development of the province. “As usual, government has revealed few details on the scope of the work the company has been contracted to do,” Rogers said. “I ask the Premier, will he table the RFP for this work, the engagement letter with a detailed work plan and deliverables, so the people of the province have a clear idea of what we are paying for?”

NDP House Leader Lorraine Michael chimed in to point out that government has exempted offshore oil exploration from its carbon pricing approach. Despite the fact that sector is the primary driver of climate change and the need for carbon pricing.

“We all need to do our part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Michael said. “I ask the Premier, why do we still need to subsidize multinational oil corporations that have profited so much from our resources and plan to continue doing so in the future?”