Bill Braden

Mahsi, Madam Speaker. May I, too, add my thanks and my admiration and my congratulations to the community of Hay River for the fantastic job of hosting the track and field competitions.

---Applause

It was a real joy to be there yesterday at the opening ceremonies.

Madam Speaker, earlier today the Premier spoke some remarks and one of them was in respect to our style of government. The Premier said that our style of government is routed in traditional systems of consensus, a foundation of trust, and the aboriginal values of mutual respect and understanding. I hope, Madam Speaker, that I, too...

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

WHEREAS the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development has ceased to exist;

AND WHEREAS the departments of Industry, Tourism and Investment and Environment and Natural Resources have been created;

AND WHEREAS the Northwest Territories Business Development and Investment Corporation has been established to replace the Northwest Territories Development Corporation and the Northwest Territories Business Credit Corporation;

AND WHEREAS standing committees of the Legislative Assembly are given responsibility for the oversight and review of government...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions this afternoon are for the Minister of Finance and this is in relation to the decision to move the Territorial Treatment Centre to Hay River. Madam Speaker, this Assembly in the last fiscal year, 2004-05, approved an expenditure for the Territorial Treatment Centre here in Yellowknife. I wonder if the Minister could give us a bit of background. What was the amount of money that was approved and what was the status of that project as approved by this Assembly for the last fiscal year? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr. Chairman, I am afraid I won’t oblige some of my colleagues with letting this one go quite yet. This motion is proposed, from my point of view, for a number of reasons. We have had considerable dialogue here over many days, every day of this session, and I am not going to spend any more time going over ground in any detail. I am going to try to give some highlights though, Mr. Chairman.

When I first offered some remarks in a media interview for this, I indicated support for the idea as has been mentioned that was brought before committee and has been attached to the need for upgrading this...

On this line of questioning, Mr. Chair, I am looking at part of the Financial Administration Act I believe under FMBS’s authority here regarding budget adjustments and transfers. This is a guideline or a set of rules that was created in November 2003, not that long ago. Copies are being produced and will be circulated shortly, Mr. Chair.

Ms. Lee pointed out a requirement on item 5.4 d) that says, "When a department makes any adjustment to a capital project that significantly affects the scope…$100,000 or 20 percent…the responsible Minister will advise the appropriate MLA or Standing Committee...

You know, okay, I’m really trying to keep an open mind and an open pair of ears on this, but, Mr. Chairman, the department asked for permission to spend $2.4 million in Yellowknife. It could have well been any other project, any other community. Then along came, for whatever reason, a change in plan, but nothing was said. We approved that project to happen in Yellowknife. Now they’re coming back without any prior information or notice or advisories to us at all and saying we want to re-approve the same project -- in fact, for more money, almost 50 percent more money -- in a different...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. For our discussion this afternoon, I don’t have that manual at hand. Maybe I can sort of narrow this down a little bit. Are there elements of timing, like when a department knows that something is going to be off schedule by so many months or perhaps it will have to be deferred to the next year, maybe it’s been cancelled, is there a time frame that says this one we had better raise a flag and send a message out there? For instance, is there a dollar amount that says this program is off by a certain percentage or dollar amount and that is the trigger? Could the Minister...

Okay. I have the picture on the process here, but I am really looking for the substantiation, Madam Speaker, and the reason that Cabinet accepted the proposal from Health and Social Services, Madam Speaker, without looking for other options or other viable proposals for the use the Dene K'onia facility; obviously a good building, but we have learned requiring substantial new renovations. Was there no thought of looking for other options by which this facility could be utilized? Why was the TTC centre seemingly, Madam Speaker, automatically chosen for this task? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. When a plan is brought before the Assembly and approval is given, there is an expectation that it will happen or that at least an explanation will be provided in a timely manner why it’s not happening. Until a few days ago, Madam Speaker, this House was not aware that the plans to invest that money in the TTC here in Yellowknife had been changed. Can the Minister explain why this Assembly, and certainly at least the Members for Yellowknife, were not made aware of the stoppage of a major program approved by this House? Why didn’t he tell us about it? Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Minister of Health and Social Services and, I believe, the Premier yesterday did indeed offer to provide Members with further substantiation of the move of the Territorial Treatment Centre to Hay River. Without getting into it in detail, Madam Speaker, it was quite an extensive document, but did not provide me with the substantiation that I was looking for, Madam Speaker, and that is the consultation, the collaboration, the cooperation of the many stakeholders that this community has in providing services to the children with severe behavioural problems who are...