Armed with injunction against harvesters, Furey hopes to push delayed budget forward

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey hopes the provincial budget will be unveiled Thursday “if it is safe to do so,” after a rowdy fisheries protest shut down Confederation Building on Wednesday morning.

At a news conference around 1:30 p.m. NT, Furey and members of his cabinet addressed questions on the government’s decision to seek an injunction against the protesters in the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The injunction was granted by Justice Robert Stack around noon, ordering protesters to provide safe access to the building.

Despite the court order, fish harvesters seem poised to protest at the doorsteps of the provincial government again Thursday.

“No one wants 500 people to be arrested tomorrow morning,” Furey warned. “What we do want is to have continued dialogue with the leadership of the [Fish, Food & Allied Workers union].”

Fish harvesters and supporters have been protesting since early March, pushing the provincial government to allow them to sell their catch to buyers outside the province.

As it stands, they can sell their catches only to buyers in Newfoundland and Labrador at a price agreed upon by the FFAW and the Association of Seafood Producers. The long-standing agreement aims to ensure processing jobs inside the province but has become a sticking point over the past year due to lower prices for species such as crab.

Fisheries Minister Elvis Loveless says he’s willing to meet some of the demands tabled by harvesters and his department has issued an expression of interest for outside buyers for the 2024 snow crab fishery. He’s also agreed to increase processing capacity in the snow crab industry.

But harvesters say their protest is not just about crab — they want similar restrictions lifted on the sale of all species they catch. Loveless said the provincial government is also willing to explore those demands.

Some protesters, such as Burin fisherman Alfred Fitzpatrick, considered the minister’s co-operation to be a “stall tactic” to appease harvesters a few weeks ahead of the start of crab season.

Protest gets heated, 2 people injured

The first clashes between protesters and police began before the sun came up. Officers on horseback attempted to push back the crowd of hundreds around 6:30 a.m.

The situation escalated over the next two hours, as public servants began to arrive for what was supposed to be budget day.

CBC News reporters watched as people struggled to get through the melee, before turning back in defeat. At one point, Meghan McCabe, director of communications for Premier Andrew Furey, tried to get through the crowd but was pushed back by a pair of irate protesters hurling expletives.

“If you’re going to let them in, you’re only going to cause trouble for yourselves,” one protester warned the police. “And that we will guarantee.”

Cameras captured tense moments as officers used horses to push back against the crowd and some protesters fought back against police advances. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary confirmed it is pursuing charges related to instances in which protesters allegedly struck the horses.

One protester was injured as harvesters pushed forward to stop public servants from entering the building and police pushed back against their efforts. A short time later, an RNC officer was also taken from the scene on a stretcher.

WATCH: Paramedics assist injured protester, police officer

Jason Spingle, secretary-treasurer of the FFAW, said it was regrettable that an RNC officer and a protester, who Spingle said broke his hip, were hurt.

By 11 a.m., government officials decided to delay the budget.

“Presently, the conditions are unsafe for employees and visitors to the complex, and there is a threat of violence,” said Finance Department spokesperson Victoria Barbour in a statement to journalists.

Province heads to court as protest intensifies

At the same time, lawyers for the provincial government were a few kilometres away at the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in St. John’s, seeking an injunction to force an end to the protest.

They argued public servants were harassed, intimidated and prevented from doing their jobs.

“The actions of the respondents constitute obstruction, mischief and nuisance,” reads the application from the province, “all of which are unlawful and which deny the province the right to fully carry out the province’s statutory and legislated mandate to conduct the business of the province.”

In the end, Stack ruled that anybody hindering public servants or impeding access to Confederation Building will be in contravention of the injunction.

John Efford Jr., meanwhile, said he was surprised by the move.

“I’m a little bit taken aback that there’s an injunction against the protest,” he said. “I thought that was everyone’s right, to have a peaceful protest.”

Furey felt otherwise.

He said he spoke to public servants who felt harassed and intimidated by the experience on Wednesday morning, and said he wouldn’t tolerate it.

“They have entirely the democratic right to peaceful protest and that is something that we encourage.as leaders, we should all encourage the democratic process. What is unacceptable is a violent protest. Some of the behaviours we saw today will not be tolerated by me or our government.”

Furey said the protest won’t stand in the way of the provincial budget forever, and he vowed to move forward as soon as they can.

“There will be a budget for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, full stop. That is the intent. When it is safe to do so, people can enter the building, and we will do it.”