ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - The first throne speech in Newfoundland and Labrador since former premier Danny Williams resigned late last year signals a new tone with Ottawa as it touts a megaproject that could use federal help.
Premier Kathy Dunderdale used her first legislative blueprint to showcase the $6.2-billion Muskrat Falls hydroelectric venture in Labrador.
The speech, read Monday by Lt.-Gov. John Crosbie, promoted the development as a way for the province and Ottawa to work together. Relations between the two governments have smoothed of late but were notoriously rocky under Williams.
"This project is unequivocally in the best interests of the people of Newfoundland and Labrador," Crosbie read.
The province "has wrestled in recent years to be heard, understood and respected by federal leaders in meaningful ways on issues that matter most to our people, but today is a new day.
"Our premier has presented to the prime minister Newfoundland and Labrador's compelling case for federal support for this national green-energy project."
The speech opened what is expected to be the last legislative session before the next provincial election set for Oct. 11.
Muskrat Falls, a joint plan with Nova Scotia to build a dam and power station on the lower Churchill River, is shaping up to be a key issue.
It could also influence support for federal Conservatives who face an election campaign starting as early as Friday. Dunderdale has asked Ottawa for loan guarantees that could shave hundreds of millions of dollars off the cost of the project.
Dunderdale told reporters Monday she isn't expecting an answer in the federal budget Tuesday because talks are continuing.
The throne speech was Dunderdale's first chance to chart her government's course since she took over when Williams quit politics in December.
At the time, Williams was embroiled in nasty rhetorical clashes with Quebec over hydroelectric developments, doctors who were without a provincial contract, and various perceived "traitors" who publicly questioned government policy.
But he is perhaps best known for his ABC (Anything But Conservative) campaign against Prime Minister Stephen Harper over what he said was a broken promise to protect offshore resources from equalization clawbacks.
The ABC crusade shut Conservatives out of all seven federal seats in the province in 2008, including two that are now targeted to help Harper win the 12 extra seats needed for a majority government.
Dunderdale has taken a markedly softer tone than her former boss. She has said she is building bridges with Ottawa, although she has joked that it's not clear whether anyone will cross them.
Christopher Dunn, a political scientist at Memorial University in St. John's, said the throne speech strikes a conciliatory chord. He said it subtly telegraphs that it's OK for people in the province to vote Conservative again -- especially if Ottawa approves the Muskrat Falls loan guarantee.
"One might call this new day federalism," he said in an interview.
"What you see with regard to the federal picture is, we tried confrontation. Now we're going to try co-operation and reasonableness and see if that works. This is a new tone from old throne speeches and old budgets because they were often quite bitter."
Liberal Leader Yvonne Jones slammed the Muskrat Falls development as a memorial to Williams that will spike electricity costs in the province.
"Muskrat Falls may be a Progressive Conservative legacy project, but it is a millstone for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador -- a millstone that will sink the economy of this province," she told the legislature.
"This deal is not good enough."
While the throne speech trumpets the province's economic strengths, it also promises action to create more child-care spaces and more affordable housing while fighting poverty.
"My government believes insufficient access to child care is not only a barrier to employment but also an obstacle to economic growth," Crosbie read from the 21-page document.
The next provincial budget, expected in April, will include a "significant initiative" focusing on infant care, it says.
The plan "will benefit families not only in larger centres but also in rural regions where child-care spaces are especially scarce."
The speech also refers to the breast cancer testing scandal that shook the province in 2007.
Hundreds of patients received botched lab test results that were used to help determine treatment. A public inquiry led by Justice Margaret Cameron made several recommendations.
"In light of the lessons of the Cameron report, my government this year will roll out a new adverse events reporting system to ensure all such events are properly reported and properly managed within our health care system," the speech says.
The Conservative government is also promising to work with Ottawa to change the Atlantic Accord Act to revamp safety oversight of the offshore oil sector.
The province has accepted a recommendation for a safety agency that's separate from industry and politics.
A public inquiry urged the creation of an independent safety board after the crash of Cougar Flight 491 killed 17 people on March 12, 2009.
The Newfoundland and Labrador legislature is one of the most lopsided in the country with 43 Conservative members versus four Liberals and one New Democrat.
Both opposition parties have said the decision by Williams to resign has renewed their hopes for gains in the next provincial election.
A Vision Critical/Angus Reid poll last month suggested Dunderdale was the second-most popular premier in the country with an approval rating of 55 per cent. She was second only to Saskatchewan's Brad Wall, but her numbers were far lower than what Williams used to achieve.
The former premier topped the country with a stratospheric 80 per cent approval rating in February 2010, which dropped to 67 per cent in November just before he left politics to resume his business career.
On the economic front, the province announced last November that it's projecting a modest surplus this fiscal year of $12.3 million instead of the $194-million deficit it originally forecast.
Newfoundland and Labrador had expected to dip into deficit for a second consecutive year with a debt-laden budget last March that offered big social spending and some tax breaks.
Finance Minister Tom Marshall said the shift from red to black was thanks to higher than expected revenues from corporate and personal taxes, along with a hike in offshore oil production.
Still, the province is shouldering relatively high debt -- especially when measured in per capita terms. Marshall said in the November fiscal update that overall debt is expected to increase again this year by about $489 million to almost $9 billion.
That debt load will grow if the Lower Churchill project goes ahead.
Economic observers have noted that while the province is the fiscal envy of other provinces, it still hasn't done enough to diversify its earnings. They stress that overall oil production is on a downward trend and won't last forever.
Newfoundland and Labrador relies on the offshore oil and gas sector for about one-third of its revenues. Oil prices, production levels and the fluctuating Canadian dollar can all have a dramatic impact on fiscal outlooks.
