Premier Furey Thanks Members of Economic Recovery Team

  • Executive Council
  • Finance

May 6, 2021

The Honourable Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, today thanked members of the Premier’s Economic Recovery Team for their work as they submitted their final report to the public and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador today.

Premier Furey also thanked all groups, organizations, and interested parties for taking the time to present their ideas and perspectives to the Team.

During an ongoing pandemic and global economic crisis, the Team of experienced leaders from a variety of backgrounds led by globally-recognized change maker Dame Moya Greene, voluntarily worked to present an exhaustive, comprehensive overview of the province’s fiscal situation and its opportunities for growth.

The Premier’s Economic Recovery Team was tasked with reviewing government expenditures, the province’s fiscal capacity, how services are delivered, and explored growth sectors such as clean energy and investments in technology – which represent investments in all sectors.

Government is now taking the report, titled ‘The Big Reset’ into consideration with a robust consultation process to encourage engagement on the options presented in the report.

The Provincial Government will be accepting comments by:

Email at engageNL@gov.nl.ca

Regular mail:
Public Engagement and Planning Division
4th Floor, West Block
P.O. Box 8700
St. John’s, NL A1B 4J6

By telephone toll free at 1-833-607-2639

Through our online portal – EngageNL.

Virtual town halls for communities and sessions for stakeholders will also be conducted over the coming weeks.

Biographies of the members of the Premier’s Economic Recovery Team are included in the backgrounder below.

Quotes
“Dame Moya Greene and the other highly-skilled members of the Premier’s Economic Recovery Team have clearly put a great deal of thought and analysis into The Big Reset, and I thank them on behalf of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. We have great opportunities in front of us as we modernize and transition to build a bright, stable future for generations to come.”
Honourable Andrew Furey
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador

“This is the start of an important conversation on the future of Newfoundland and Labrador, as we all look to transform our province, to improve our way of life, and to leave behind financial concerns.”
Honourable Siobhan Coady
Minister of Finance and President of Treasury Board

– 30 –

Media contacts
Meghan McCabe
Office of the Premier
709-729-3960
meghanmccabe@gov.nl.ca

Diana Quinton
Finance
709-729-2477, 697-1566

dianaquinton@gov.nl.ca

BACKGROUNDER

Biographies of Member of the Premier’s Economic Recovery Team

 Dame Moya Greene, Chair
Born and raised in St. John’s, Dame Moya Greene is the former CEO of the British postal service, Royal Mail, and the former CEO of Canada Post. Dame Greene worked in the public service in Ottawa for 17 years and then in senior positions for Bombardier, CIBC and TD Securities before being appointed CEO of Canada Post in 2005. In 2010, she became the first woman and non-British citizen to take over the British postal service, Royal Mail. She retired from the position in 2018, having been honoured by the Financial Times, the Evening Standard and Her Majesty the Queen for excellence in business and in postal services to the public.

Brendan Brothers
Brendan Brothers, a computer engineering graduate of Memorial University, co-founded Verafin in 2003. Verafin provides the industry’s leading Financial Crime Management platform used by nearly 3,000 banks and credit unions across North America. With a specialized knowledge of robotics, behavior-based analytics, and probabilistic networks, he is a technical expert who knows the product inside and out. Mr. Brothers is also a seasoned public speaker, salesperson, and marketer who is constantly immersed in the customer side of Verafin from support and training to sales and marketing.

Moya Cahill, P.Eng.
Moya Cahill is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of PanGeo Subsea Inc., a technology and service provider of high-resolution 3D sub-bottom acoustic imaging technology. A professional engineer holding a B.Eng. in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from Memorial University, Ms. Cahill has over 30 years’ experience in the oil and gas sector and more recently in offshore renewables energy sector. In 1994 Ms. Cahill received the Canadian Women Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and ‘Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.’ She also received Noia’s Outstanding Contribution Award.  She was Chair of Board of Governors for College of North Atlantic, a member of the Premier’s Advisory Council on the Economy and Technology, and member of the Federal Government’s Sectoral Advisory Group for International Trade. Ms. Cahill is Past-Chairman of the Board for Marine Atlantic Inc., Past-Director of Maritime Tel & Tel Co in Nova Scotia, Past-President of Noia, and was a member of the Federal Task Force for the Future of Canada’s Financial Sector. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Canada’s Ocean Supercluster and Kraken Sonar Systems Inc.  Ms. Cahill resides in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Zita Cobb
Zita Cobb is Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of the Shorefast, which uses a social entrepreneurship model to contribute to cultural and economic resiliency for Fogo Island. Its most significant projects to date are the Fogo Island Inn, Fogo Island Arts, the Woodshop on Fogo Island, and Fogo Island Fish. Ms. Cobb has considerable experience in the telecommunications industry and has received Honourary Doctorates from Memorial University, Carleton University and McGill University, as well as a Honourary Fellowship from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and the Dr. Gill Chin Lim Global Award. In 2016, Ms. Cobb was awarded the Order of Canada in recognition of Shorefast’s work in collaboration with the community of Fogo Island to help secure a more resilient future for this singular rural place.

Oral Dawe
Oral Dawe is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Dawe Holdings. Previously, Mr. Dawe was the Chief Executive Officer of J.P. Morgan’s Asia-Pacific Commodities Group and was a member of J.P. Morgan’s Asia-Pacific Investment Banking Management Committee and a member of J. P. Morgan’s China Management Committee. Prior to those experiences, he was with Goldman Sachs for 10 years in a variety of capacities including President of Goldman Sachs Singapore (SE Asia), Co-Head of Goldman’s Asia-Pacific Commodity Group, Co-Head of North American Energy Sales based in New York, as well serving on a number of Asia-Pacific boards.

Philip R. Earle
Philip Earle is Vice President of Air Borealis LP, a majority Indigenous owned company with its corporate offices in Labrador. While growing the company, Mr. Earle has placed considerable focus on building human resource capacity by promoting Labrador Inuit and Innu to key positions. Mr. Earle’s background is steeped in rural and Indigenous communities where he has built strong knowledge and experience through working with Indigenous leaders and understanding their culture and values. Mr. Earle also serves on the Board of Directors of the Air Transport Association of Canada and Destination Labrador.

Chief Misel Joe
Misel Joe was born in Miawpukek into a strong Mi’kmaq family; both his grandfather and uncle have held the office of hereditary Saqamaw. Chief Joe has been educated in all the Mi’kmaq ways and traditions. Morris Lewis, the first appointed Chief in Newfoundland by the Grand Chief in Mi’kmaq territory, was Chief Joe’s great, great uncle. Since 1973, Chief Joe has been involved in First Nation politics, first as a Councilor and after the death of his uncle, Chief William Joe in 1982, he became Traditional Saqamaw and the Newfoundland District Chief for the Mi’kmaq Grand Council. Chief Joe is currently serving his 14th consecutive two-year term as Administrative Chief. He is also the spiritual leader of his people. In this capacity he has gained recognition provincially, nationally, and internationally, particularly in the area of spiritual healing. He is a recognized author and has published three literary works.

In May 2004, Chief Joe was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, by Memorial University. In 2012, the Queen’s Jubilee medal was awarded to Chief Joe. The recipients of this medal are recognized individual contribution to making Canada better for our communities and collectively by helping to create a smarter, more caring nation. On January 24, 2018 in a ceremony in Ottawa, Chief Misel Joe was awarded the Order of Canada. The Order of Canada’s mandate is to recognize outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation. Since 2019, Chief Joe has been appointed to Honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the 5 Canadian Ranger Patrol Group.

Richard J. Kostoff
Richard Kostoff is a former Deputy Chair of TD Securities Inc. Mr. Kostoff is a past board member of the Ontario Financing Authority and former Chair of the OCADU Foundation. He currently serves as a member of the Independent Review Committee for Fidelity Investments Canada. Additional appointments include the Chair of Smooth Commerce Inc., and the boards of HealthCare 365, Novari Health and FreePoint Technologies Inc. He has advised a number of government and corporate entities including GMP Inc., GE Capital Canada, Infrastructure Ontario, OP Trust and The Hospital for Sick Children. Mr. Kostoff is proud to be an Honorary Life Member of the Toronto Bond Traders Association and a past recipient of the Women in Capital Markets Award for Leadership.

Earl Ludlow
Earl Ludlow is the Chairperson of the Independent Appointments Commission and has temporarily stepped aside to assume this role. He recently retired as Executive Vice President, Eastern Canadian and Caribbean Operations and Operational Advisor to the President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortis Inc. His career with the Fortis Group spanned nearly 40 years.

Mr. Ludlow, a native from Joe Batt’s Arm, has an extensive career as a community volunteer, including two terms on Memorial University’s Board of Regents and two terms as the Honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, 1st battalion. He is a member of the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador, has been inducted into the Atlantic Provinces CEO Business Hall of Fame by Atlantic Business Magazine and was designated as the Humanitarian of the Year by the Canadian Red Cross in 2010. Mr. Ludlow earned a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical) in 1980 and a Masters of Business Administration from Memorial University in 1994.

Iris Petten
Iris Petten is the Chair of Memorial University’s Board of Regents. She is a senior executive with over 25 years of experience in the fishing industry and was born and raised in Port de Grave. Ms. Petten has served as a Corporate Director of Canship Ugland Ltd., Canada Post Corporation, and Oceanex. Her work and volunteer experience with many organizations, including the Canadian Armed Forces, Kids Eat Smart, Newfoundland and Labrador Angel Network, Easter Seals, and the Advisory Committee of the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University, illustrates her exceptional versatility and adaptability within a variety of organizations.

Gary Mooney
Gary Mooney is a Newfoundlander and Labradorian and a St. Bon’s alumnus (1962). Mr. Mooney has been a foundational supporter of Shallaway Choir and Stella Burry House. He has also endowed several scholarships for Newfoundland and Labrador students to attend Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto. Mr. Mooney has had an extremely diverse career as a Jesuit Priest, an academic, a lawyer and an entrepreneur. He was formerly CEO, and latterly Chairman Emeritus of the Canadian division of a Fortune 500 company, and pioneered title insurance and legal processing outsourcing for financial institutions in Canada.

David Vardy
David Vardy served in a number of executive positions in the Provincial Government, including Clerk of the Executive Council, President of the Marine Institute, Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Chair of the Public Utilities Commission. He is former Director of the Public Policy Research Centre and currently an Associate of the Harris Centre at Memorial University. Mr. Vardy has received the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration awarded by the Institute of Public Administration of Canada, the Gold Medal Award from the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada and an honorary doctorate from Memorial University for his contributions to public policy and governance.

2021 05 06 3:27 pm