Executive Council
October 14, 2026

The following are remarks delivered at the State of the Province Address at JAG Soundhouse in St. John’s on October 14, 2026, by the Honourable Tony Wakeham, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador:

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I want to thank all of the board members. And all of your staff who put this great event together.

As well as all of the wonderful workers, the vendors and volunteers here at the JAG. Let’s have a round of applause for everyone behind the scenes helping pull this off.

It’s great to see so many of my colleagues from the House of Assembly in attendance. And municipal leaders as well.

And a thank you to all of you here in this room. Board of Trade members. Business owners and risk takers. Entrepreneurs and employers. All of you contribute so much and do so much for our province.

You know, it’s a pretty great time to be a Newfoundlander and Labradorian.

Just last week, Netflix debuted its new series “Below,” starring Josh Hartnett and set right here in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Who’s seen it?

I love it.

The cast and crew have done an outstanding job, and what a showcase it’s been for our province on the world stage.

And they even took a real run at getting our accents right.

God love ’em. We don’t exactly make it easy.

But whether it’s our culture, our landscapes, our sense of humour, or the way we tell our stories, it’s fantastic to see Newfoundland and Labrador being shared with audiences around the world.

Sometimes it takes the eyes of outsiders to remind us that we live in a remarkable place.

It is sometimes easy for those of us who live here to take that for granted.
I don’t take that for granted.

And I know you don’t either.

When you appreciate what you have, you want to grow it. You want to protect it. You want to build.

We are a province of builders. And always have been. And that includes you.

Just last week I was at the DefSec Atlantic conference in Halifax where two Newfoundland and Labrador companies, Avalon Holographics and SmartICE, were recognized for their ideas, people and leadership that make our province built for defence.

Our business community is ready to lead. In fact, Board of Trade members have been builders for more than 55 years.

We’re fortunate to have the Board’s leadership. Your insight. Your support.

And I suppose … if you must … every now and then your constructive criticism as well. All of it helps build a stronger economy and a stronger future for our province.

MARKING AN ANNIVERSARY

Fifty-five years is a long time.

Of course, I have to tell you, I’m also here to mark a much more recent anniversary.

It was exactly one year ago tonight that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador entrusted the Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador with governing and entrusted me with the honour to serve as Premier.

To be entrusted with the stewardship of our province is the greatest honour of my life. And in those 12 months since the election, I have worked, and our entire government has worked, to live up to the faith that the people put in us.

So today in my second State of the Province Address, I want to take a moment to take stock of that year and how far we have come.

We ran for office on a clear promise. That we would be a government “For All of Us.”

It is more than a slogan. It is a mindset that I take into every meeting, every piece of legislation, and every decision I make. Just as it is the standard I expect from members of my cabinet and for everyone who serves in our government.

And what does it mean to be “For All of Us”?

It doesn’t mean you can be all things to all people.

Nor does it mean you can make everybody happy all the time.

I take a look at Facebook from time to time to remind myself I can’t be all things to all people.

But it does mean a different approach to government.

You look at the people who were taken for granted under the previous government.

Seniors …

Rural families …

Trades workers …

The list goes on and on.

It’s not the cabinet table where the future of this province is decided.

It’s the kitchen tables.

And, let me tell you, at the kitchen tables I’ve been invited to sit at, most people aren’t talking about political philosophy, economic models or intergovernmental arguments.

Instead, they want to know there will be enough jobs.

That they will have access to high-quality health care no matter where they live.

That they will be able to make ends meet.

That they can feel safe in their own home.

That they have access to reliable roads, schools and housing.

That seniors have the support they need. That parents and children have the support they need.

And so, then you ask, in a time of scarce resources and competing priorities, how can we show up for them?

But of course, this is one of the big challenges of government.

The list of needs runs long.

But the money runs short.

In fact, when we took office, the cupboard the previous Liberal government left us was nearly completely bare. The financial problems facing our province were severe and growing.

And so, the challenge that we set for ourselves, and that I, as Premier, ultimately set for myself, was how to implement a clear plan that allowed us to deliver on our commitments while also aggressively growing our economy, so that we can continue paying for them.

And that requires a building mindset.

PROGRESS REPORT

But first, let’s do a quick survey of our work to date.

Our government ran on a platform of:

Better health care. Lower taxes. Safer communities.

And while the challenges are real and the work continues, I am proud to say that across all three priorities we are making progress.

Let’s start with better health care.

What does better health care for all of us look like?

Well, for one, it has to work better for Labrador and people in the rural parts of the Island.

So let me give you an example. Recently, our Minister of Health, Joedy Wall, and Minister of Labrador Affairs, Lela Evans, doubled the investment in the Medical Transportation Assistance Program in order to reimburse 100 per cent of eligible expenses.

Cost should never be a barrier that prevents a rural, remote, or Labrador family from seeking the medical care they need.

This is a promise made and kept.

We know there is no time to lose, our province faces a mounting crisis. That is why our government is creating 64 new acute care beds here in St. John’s.

And new long-term care beds in places like Stephenville – Baie St. George, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Clarenville and Corner Brook … with more beds in places like Springdale and Labrador West on the way.

And that’s why we are building a new urgent care centre in Conception Bay South. I know our Deputy Premier, Barry Petten, lobbied hard for that one.

This is what our commitment to better health care for all of us looks like.

There’s lots of work ahead. But we will not stop.

How about lower taxes? What does lower taxes for all of us look like?

Well, in Budget 2026, the Minister of Finance, Craig Pardy, announced that we were increasing the basic personal exemption.

This year when you file your income taxes – every single Newfoundlander and Labrador will not pay a cent of income tax on the first $15,000 you earn.

Not a dime.

This is a tax cut for every single taxpayer in the province.

And that’s why we reduced the small business tax rate January 1 of this year. And we will be reducing it even more January 1 of next year.

Just like making the gas tax reduction permanent will be a tax cut for the drivers of the province.

We know there is a lot of work to do. Gas and grocery bills are still high. And low-income seniors and families are hardest hit of all.

That is why we have increased the seniors benefit for low-income seniors and expanded access to the child benefit for low-income families.

And once again, there is still a lot of work to do. But this is a promise made and kept. And we are delivering lower taxes for all of us.

And who knows, we might even have more to say about how we can help our seniors, children and everyone else in the weeks ahead.

Including our Churchill River Electricity Rebate that the opposition opposed. But we’re going to deliver.

I will have more on Churchill Falls in a moment.

But let’s now turn to safer communities.

Where, under the leadership of our Minister of Justice and Public Safety, Helen Conway-Ottenheimer, we have added 37 more new graduates to the RNC.

We now have the highest number of sworn police officers in the RNC in the force’s history.

Yes, there is still work to do. But this is another promise made and kept.

And we will continue delivering safer communities for all of us.

GROWING OUR ECONOMY

My friends. We have a plan and we are delivering on that plan.

We have come so far. But there is still so much we want to do.

That Newfoundlanders and Labradorians need us to do.

And that will require money.

And nobody, inside this room or outside of it, should underestimate the extent of our fiscal challenge.

Sitting around and waiting for oil windfalls is not going to solve the problem on its own. With the war in Iran, prices are certainly elevated today. But that is transient. And nobody should ever build their fiscal plan around the continuation of a war. And I certainly will not be.

And frankly, I know, as we all do, those same elevated oil prices are hitting Newfoundlanders and Labradorians at the pump or on their home heating bills.

We cannot and should not and will not be counting on artificially high oil prices in perpetuity.

Instead, we need an energy plan that expands our production of the offshore resources we have. And makes sure that those proceeds are not squandered but invested properly in building something that lasts.

BAY DU NORD

That is the approach I – and Minister of Energy and Mines, Lloyd Parrott – took to Bay du Nord.

When we took office, this project was stalled.

The previous government’s priorities may have been somewhere else – but they certainly were not on unlocking the potential of Newfoundland and Labrador’s offshore oil and gas.

To me, this was inexcusable. After all, Newfoundland and Labrador is Canada’s offshore oil sector. This is the frontier. And this is where the value lies.

So, we decided to make oil and gas a priority once again.

And we got to work to negotiate a new deal with Equinor that we announced last spring. And isn’t it exciting that one of the world’s largest oil companies – Shell – also sees the potential in our offshore and are making an investment in Bay du Nord.

This project will result in an estimated $6.4 billion in revenue to the provincial treasury during the first phase of the project.

It is also a $14 billion capital project that will guarantee 3 million hours of fabrication employment and 31 million person hours of employment throughout the project. This includes 1.9 million hours of work in support and professional services. It will also include 100 new jobs at Bay du Nord’s new integrated operations centre to be located right here.

And there will be $15 billion of operating expenditure in the province. $15 billion that I expect will open up direct and indirect opportunities for many in this room.

For the first time ever, we negotiated legally guaranteed full life-of-field benefits for the entire project. The benefits are coming – and staying here.

But my favourite part might be how – as part of this agreement, Equinor is stepping up to unlock a whole new industry by contributing $200 million to a Fabrication Fund that we will use towards the construction of a new state-of-the-art, large-scale floating dry dock at Bull Arm.

Building this dry dock will create hundreds of new jobs – long-term opportunities for our province’s skilled trades workforce. It will be proudly fabricated at Bull Arm, built by the hands and expertise of TradesNL workers.

A floating dry dock is an impressive piece of engineering. Newfoundland and Labrador doesn’t have one. In fact – the entirety of Canada’s East Coast doesn’t have a single one.

And in stepping up to fill this void. We are solving both an economic and national security issue for our country.

Because these days floating dry docks are essential to large-scale vessel maintenance and repair. Wait times for commercial dry dock work in Canada are between 12 and 24 months. For Coast Guard and naval vessels, it is between 24 and 48 months.

Today, too much of this urgent work is being diverted to locations outside of Canada. When completed we will bring this work home while becoming the hub of a new sector built around engineering and fabrication work.

That’s how you use an oil project to not just grow our revenues. But to grow a new, more diversified and resilient economy as well.

We refuse to take shortcuts.

And we refuse to leave Newfoundland and Labrador stuck in the past.

Instead, we are going to do the hard work – and deliver real benefits for the long term.

CHURCHILL FALLS / GULL ISLAND

And this, my friends, is the approach we are taking when it comes to Churchill Falls and Gull Island.

Now when it comes to Churchill Falls and Gull Island – Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have seen, up close, what taking shortcuts looks like.

That was the approach that the previous government – including the Liberal Leader took – when they tried to sell Newfoundlanders and Labradorians a flawed, faulty MOU that they rushed in front of the cameras for political purposes.

We commissioned an Independent Review that established a clear verdict.

The MOU would have left mines unbuilt.

Our books straddled with billions of new debts.

And Quebec in control of our future.

We took the Independent Review, and we used it as a framework to build something better. We kept the parts of the MOU that the Independent Review told us worked – and we went hard at work to fix the MOU’s many flaws.

We negotiated a new and better deal with both the Carney Government and Quebec – that will deliver 760 megawatts more for Newfoundland and Labrador.

And just imagine – the Liberals voted yes to an MOU with less power but no to 760 more megawatts.

We negotiated a new and better deal that will deliver $273 billion in cash to our province – that’s almost a billion dollars more per year – than what was in the MOU.

The Liberals voted yes to an MOU that shortchanged us. They turned around and voted no to a billion more per year.

We negotiated a new and better deal that finally solved the transmission challenge. Newfoundland and Labrador will now have a full portfolio of 985 megawatts of guaranteed transmission options that Quebec cannot touch.

The Liberals voted yes to an MOU with zero new transmission. And no to 985 more megawatts.

The Liberals voted yes to an MOU pricing scheme that kept Quebec in the driver’s seat. We got them to concede to paying a 150 per cent price premium on Churchill Falls power. 150 per cent! And the Liberals voted no.

The Liberals voted yes to an MOU that locked us in long-term for 50 years. But no to an optionality provision that year to year leaves Newfoundland and Labrador in control of how our power gets used.

The Liberals voted no to a deal that ensures Quebec assumes all of the risk on constructing Gull Island – with not a single Newfoundland and Labrador taxpayer or ratepayer dollar at stake.

They voted no to a guarantee of 85 per cent of all jobs staying in Newfoundland and Labrador.

And they voted no to guaranteed escalation and inflation protection.

Let me be clear.

The Leader of the Liberal Party can twist himself into rhetorical knots all he wants. But at the end of the day the facts are clear: he voted yes to less, and no to more.

But for the rest of us. If you believe in building. If you believe in growing. This deal is a win for you.

If you believe that seizing opportunities is more important than whining about who gets credit for them. This deal is a win for you.

And the time to get this done is now. In fact, right now we have a partner in Mark Carney and the Federal Government who have stepped up huge with billions of new value for our province to get this deal over the finish line.

It is true partnership – in Mark Carney I am delighted to work with a Liberal leader who actually wants to get big things done. It is refreshing. He supports my vision for Churchill Falls and Gull Island and I support his.

And I want you to know that when it comes to the new premier-designate of Quebec.

We have already started a dialogue.

But a win-win-win remains a win-win-win no matter your politics.

He wants time to review the deal, which is fair.

But I am confident he will see that it works for his province just as it works for ours.

This new and better deal is a true win for everybody.

For Newfoundland and Labrador.

For the Carney Government in Ottawa.

For Quebec.

For our trades workers.

For ratepayers who will see a rebate on their electricity bills.

For businesses and suppliers.

It is a win for our province’s bottom line.

And it is a deal that will transform the potential of Labrador’s economy and the $200 billion of critical minerals in the Labrador Trough that Canada and the world desperately need – if only we had the power.

The people who tell us to reject this deal offer literally nothing in return.

They don’t actually want any better deal.

They want the status quo until 2041.

Fifteen more years of nothing, followed by a roll of the dice that in 2041 somebody, somewhere will offer to do all of the things we won in this deal – plus interest in all that we would give up by walking away today. That’s $18 billion that they would have to find.

They claim they want to share their facts.

But actually, they want you to share their faith.

And it is a blind faith.

But I will always take real results over blind faith.

Because we have the resources.

We have the power.

We have the opportunity to build something long-term and lasting.

CONCLUSION

My friends,

How lucky are we to be Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

How fortunate we all are.

To live in the greatest place in the entire world.

A place – like nowhere else.

And people around the world notice.

I spoke about the Netflix show earlier.

But here is something else – last month I went out to Gander to mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack. And it is just amazing how that experience in Gander still made so many people from around the world lifelong friends of our province.

How many people here went out to Gander for the return of “Come From Away”?

Just imagine – a hit Broadway musical – about the joy strangers found right here at home during one of the world’s darkest times.

Because it is different here. The word is getting out. We just finished a great tourism season. Our tourism numbers are up even higher than what they were before the pandemic.

In a world that once again feels dangerous. Global economic challenges. Global security challenges. And – to be frank – the constant threats of President Trump who has declared war on our economy and our sovereignty.

It is great to stand here in a corner of the world where – while we have our challenges,

We believe in hard work.

Our communities are strong.

And our people are kind.

And we are always, always ready to build.

So, if you want me to tell you about the State of our Province?

I will tell you – the state of the province – as it appears to me. Not just as Premier – but as a fellow Newfoundlander and Labradorian.

There is nowhere else I’d rather be.

Thank you so much.