Bob Bromley

Further, income on its own is not a good measure of an individual’s or a family’s ability to pay. Families must also juggle housing challenges, higher cost of living in some areas, unequal access to income, other health issues and debts.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, I hear little from the Minister about how she is reducing costs and increasing efficiencies for supplementary health. Pharmaceuticals are acknowledged as a big part of the bill, yet we are still awaiting action on bulk purchasing and other opportunities to manage these costs further. I have heard nothing yet about how we will encourage or...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will be supporting this motion. I think quite a number of points have been raised by Members of this Assembly, at least since the beginning of the Assembly, and presumably in previous Assemblies as well, that have not been resolved satisfactorily and an audit such as this can go a long way to doing that. Some of the important concerns that are still ongoing in our current situation are the long-term implications with taking this on our debt, what prevention measures can be conceived of and put in place, and, as has been mentioned, the value of P3 projects...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Of course the last two points we’ve raised means that they could operate together with an alternative routing to provide both for the diamond mines and these other customers in a way that would join the grids and we would enjoy those benefits.

My last question is related to the diamond mines. We’ve recently had occasion to meet with some of the companies and we’re pleased to hear that they’re extending their mine life considerably as they find new reserves and come up with lower cost means of production. This provides again a window of opportunity that might add a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I said johnny-come-lately because this side of the House at least is not convinced at all that sufficient consideration has been given to the public good in this project.

New considerations such as we have seen here today will not stop the process as the Premier implied. In fact, just last month Deze Corporation and the Hydro Corporation came up with a brand new un-contemplated place to cross Great Slave Lake. So now there’s a whole new process starting there. Of course, that means we don’t know what the routing is from the north side of the lake to the mines.

Another...

I would like to take the Premier up on that offer and just to be clear, because the Premier suggested earlier that I do not put enough weight and bearing on our aboriginal partners, perhaps as we have with the Deh Cho Bridge project, I insist that we include our aboriginal partners on this as we go forward, they ensuring financial return and we ensuring public benefit. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to table two documents. The first one is from Imperial Oil dated March 15th to the National Energy Board relating to economy feasibility studies of the Mackenzie Gas Project.

The second one is from Lawson Lundell on behalf of GNWT to the National Energy Board dated March 22, 2010. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate both commitments from the Premier there. Just to follow up on the greenhouse gas emissions, again the alternative routing does not preclude this, indeed, nor would we want it to. I think that’s a major objective that we want to retain.

The Hydro Corporation has shown incredible patience in awaiting agreements with the diamond mines for the power. Would the Premier direct the Hydro Corporation to also have discussions -- and this gets to his last point -- with Avalon, with Tyhee, with NICO, with Yellowknife, with Behchoko, to establish their interest and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to pursue our long-suffering Premier here with another round on the Taltson project. This project, of course, is embedded within the context of our NWT Hydro Strategy which was put out in 2008. I’ve commented in the House here and in committee a number of times on that draft strategy. I believe other Members have. There is no evidence that I have seen that any of those comments have come to roost anywhere. I think that it’s time that we did finalize that strategy, because a good vision would help guide the development of projects such as this and avoid this...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier this month I made a statement on the Deze Corporation’s Taltson Hydro development and transmission routing to the diamond mines, suggesting that we might get far greater benefits from our $13-plus million investment by giving straightforward consideration to the public good.

Environmentally and socially sound economic development remains a priority of this government, and I believe this project needs a critical look to ensure that our public and our regional economies are well served by the work. I would like to see us sharpen our pencils and come up...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Premier with regard to the Deh Cho Bridge Project. We are approaching our last year of the 16th Assembly. Here we are proposing to take on a considerable amount of debt for the Deh Cho Bridge Project. I am wondering what are the implications and the consequences to the 17th Assembly of carrying this much debt on to their backs in the future. Thank you.