The Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland and Labrador (RNU) says today’s Throne Speech outlines the right goals for healthcare, but Budget 2026 must now deliver concrete action, funding, and measurable results.
The Speech focused on better healthcare, ending reliance on private nursing agencies, expanding access to nurse practitioners, and stabilizing rural emergency services. RNU agrees with these priorities and says the next step is clear.
In the Throne Speech, government stated: “We are working with the Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland and Labrador to eliminate outside agency nursing with a home-grown solution that will see more nurses from within the province working in our communities.”
RNU welcomed that commitment and says it must now be backed by investment.
“We agree with the government’s goals,” said Yvette Coffey, RN, President of RNU. “Now we expect the budget to match the promises. Speeches set direction. Budgets build systems.”
RNU has already submitted a detailed proposal for a unionized Provincial Travel Team that would reduce agency dependence, stabilize rural services, and keep healthcare dollars in the public system. The model includes fair incentives for rural and remote communities, paid travel time, fatigue protections, and public reporting on vacancies and overtime.
“If government is serious about ending agency nursing, Budget 2026 must fund the public alternative,” Coffey said. “You do not end instability with hope. You end it with a workforce plan that works.”
The Throne Speech also committed to expanding access to nurse practitioners. RNU says that promise must include stable funding for nurse practitioner led clinics and a modern compensation framework that reflects their level of responsibility and scope of practice.
“You cannot expand access to nurse practitioners without fixing how nurse practitioners are funded and paid,” said Coffey. “If we want more people attached to primary care, we have to retain and recruit the professionals who provide it.”
While encouraged by the direction, RNU notes that several key workforce issues were not addressed in detail. These include implementing recommendations from the modern core staffing review, correcting pay inequities among nurses doing the same work, and funding paid clinical placements for nursing students as part of a long term recruitment strategy.
RNU acknowledges that a Throne Speech cannot cover every policy detail. However, the union says nurses and patients now need to see clear investments in the upcoming budget.
“We are ready to work with this government,” Coffey said. “It is time to move from aspiration to action. Nurses and patients need to see dedicated dollars and real timelines in Budget 2026.”
RNU says it remains committed to working collaboratively with government to strengthen public healthcare across Newfoundland and Labrador.
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About the Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland & Labrador
The Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland & Labrador represents over 6,000 registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, and nurse practitioners across the province, advocating for quality health care, safe working conditions, and respect for the nursing profession.
For more information, please contact:
Jonathan Hamel
Director of Communications
Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland & Labrador
Tel: (709) 691-6890
Email: jhamel@rnunl.ca