Bob Bromley

I appreciate the response and I’m happy with that. I guess, just leaping to the bottom line here, I assume some changes were recommended out of the review and that we’ll be discussing those. Are we, according to the review, vastly underfunding our communities, or is there anything that we can have a preliminary look at or be aware of on that? I know there is always a lot of context to go with numbers, but I’ll leave it at that.

Thanks to the deputy minister for that good information. I’m glad to hear we’re doing that. It seems like there’s a lot more activity than might have been happening under the previous regime. Could I just ask, have there been any taken to Justice that Justice has said they wouldn’t act on that Lands felt should be acted on?

I’ll leave it at that and just say I suspect that the answer is no, or people would be doing that more and that’s why there is such a thing as LICs. But again, we’re talking about the cost of living here and we’re talking about people leaving the North faster than people are arriving in the North. So, I just hope there would be some consideration given to this as a priority to help deal with the real cost of living in the North. That’s all I had, just a comment. Thank you.

So inspectors are in this division? I understand, okay. So, are we fully staffed now in the inspector positions that we have? Maybe I can get an update on how we’re increasing the inspections as compared to the federal performance and the cost that that engendered in the past. Thank you.

Thanks for that response. One of the issues that have been also bumbling away for years now is the local improvement charges, the provision of the authority, the capability for municipalities to deal with that and offer that. In its absence, we are, to some degree, adding to the cost of living are not taking advantage of the opportunities. We have to help residents with the cost of living. We are also avoiding, really, the opportunity to help with the cost of renewable energy infrastructure.

As we heard earlier today from my colleague Mr. Moses as he talked about the exceptional front-end costs...

Thank you for that update. It sounds like a pretty good response to me. I guess I’ll just ask at this point, have there been any comments that the Minister has been able to incorporate or address already in the planning for the recreational leasing policies? If not, I’ll leave it at for now on that subject and move on to another one. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to add my voice to my colleague’s, Ms. Bisaro, on the considerable disappointment in not seeing any response to the concerns raised in the past. There is an efficient legislative capacity in this department. Initially we were led to believe the limit was in the Department of Justice and when we discovered that it wasn’t, it was actually in the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, we raised this very solidly with the Minister. The legislation needs only get stronger and perhaps more desperate every day. I am sure the Minister would like to address...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I believe we’re on page 113, wildlife. I guess my first question is I see there’s been a $1 million reduction in wildlife research and management. This is a time when I know we’re all aware we have serious issues. Why the drop there? If I can get an explanation on that.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last March the government adopted sweeping devolution legislation without one iota of public review. Members of this House insisted that a meaningful process for public input be put in place. The process now in place is pitiful. The outreach to citizenry on the seven substantive acts is limited to a few newspaper ads inviting people to go to the government website and fight their way through menus to get to a place that they purportedly can leave comments and ask questions.

Then what happens? Constituents report that the response time to questions posted to the site is...

Then there’s the understanding that we would have surplus. Perhaps it’s not in the Fiscal Responsibility Policy. Fifty percent of our infrastructure budget would be based on surplus. If I could just get the deputy minister or the Minister to fill in that part of the equation for me.