Many of the calls for an independent review of the Churchill Falls MOU have centred around a recommendation out of the LeBlanc report into Muskrat Falls, but government argues that doesn’t apply in this circumstance.

A four-day debate in the legislature about the agreement with Quebec began yesterday.

The first recommendation out of the 2020 report is that government should not undertake “the planning, approval or construction of any large project” with a project budget of at least $50-million without an independent review.

While that has been the basis of calls for a review of the MOU, Premier Andrew Furey argues that recommendation is not relevant to this particular situation.

He says that recommendation relates to the planning or construction of a particular project. He says once definitive agreements are signed, and proposed projects get to that stage then the LeBlanc recommendation will be followed.

Opposition leader Tony Wakeham calls Furey’s response “very upsetting.”

He accuses the Premier of “playing with words,” saying that he should be agreeing with an independent review.