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Newfoundland and Labrador: Quick Facts

Quick Facts

• Capital - St. John's
• Motto - Quaetrite Prime Regnum Dei (Seek ye first the Kingdom of God)
• Flower - Pitcher Plant
• Entered Confederation - 31 March 1949
• Members of the Legislative Assembly - 48
• Members of Parliament - 7
• Senators - 6
• Population, 1998 - 538,832
• Average annual family income, 1996 - $42,993
• Employment rate, 1997 - 62.4%
• Per capita health expenditures, 1995 - $2,612
• Inflation as measured by the CPI, 1997 - 1.2%
• Average weekly earnings, 1997 - $483.49
• Housing starts, 1997 - 960
• Provincial sales tax, 1998 - 10%
• Urban population, 1996 - 49.8%
• GDP per capita, 1995 - $16,858
• Land area out of Canada's total area - 4.06%

Sources: Statistics Canada, 1999 Canadian Encyclopedia

Cities

St. John's, the capital city, is located in the Avalon Peninsula, and the historic commercial centre of the island, is the province's largest city, with a population of approximately 101,936, with a metro-area population of 177,000.

Other major centres are Grand Falls, Windsor and Corner Brook. Smaller communities - called outports - remain an important element in Newfoundland society. The twin towns of Labrador City and Wabush, which together form the largest urban community of Labrador, are based on the iron-ore mining industries of the area.

Time Zone

Newfoundland has its own time zone, the Newfoundland Time Zone, and is 3.5 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time.

Labrador is situated in the Atlantic Time Zone.

Climate

The island of Newfoundland enjoys winters that are surprisingly mild by Canadian standards, between 0°C and -5°C., though with a high rate of precipitation. The average temperature in Newfoundland in the summer is between 10°C and 20°C. Labrador, by comparison, has cold winters, between 10°C and -25°C, and brief summers with temperatures between 5°C and 15°C. Newfoundland's climate can best be described as moderate and maritime.