Weledeh

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Mr. Speaker, I hear a tendency to think as if this is a complex situation and so on, and big agriculture…. I’m sure there is a role for agriculture here, and we obviously need to support it a lot more. But there are a lot of local situations that could be addressed without that.

You know, we’re pouring huge subsidies into our communities because of these situations.

Will the Minister also commit to looking into requiring some service from the people that we’re subsidizing and that are able to take advantage? In other words, we cannot continue to support rising costs. Why not start requiring some...

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Mr. Speaker, that’s certainly a project that I’m aware of. It’s pretty modest; it’s not taken up very well. I’ve been working with the community of Fort Providence myself indirectly through non-government organizations on these issues. Every community is full of people that require food, so we need a comprehensive, well-thought-out, well-laid-out program across the Northwest Territories that encourages this. There are challenges in different areas, but there are huge opportunities just the same.

Once again I’m asking what new comprehensive programs are being put in place with this budget to...

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

That would certainly be clear language and understandable, which would be a refreshing change here. Just one more clarification. On B-5 there's a graph in the Budget Address, and it lists components of change, strategic initiatives and other initiatives that I think total $72 million according to the paragraph under “Expenditures” on the same page. What's the difference here between strategic initiatives and other initiatives, and are those outlined somewhere that's accessible?

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Just briefly on the clarity and so on of the budget, I'd like to just get some clarity. The Minister says that the GNWT intends to realign $135 million in expenditures. For clarification, does that mean cut, or is he realigning it some other way? Maybe disappearing it or something.

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

...to this projection. So I ask the same question again.

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Finance and the Premier. Again, because of communications or lack of same, our public has been left trying to sort of work by Braille, if you will, to figure out on what basis this government has made projections that put us into deficit a couple years or three years into our term here. This has obviously cost the public and non-government organizations, volunteer groups, a lot of resources as they try and solve this mystery.

Will the Premier commit to immediately providing the public, who are our partners and our clients, with full information...

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our forests offer an amazing potential for diversifying our diet, from birch syrup to nutrient-laden mushrooms and other foods. Renewable energy is available in every community, varying from area to area. Building skills and materials are available, but need investigation and development.

The Minister of Finance noted yesterday that we are totally vulnerable to rising costs and global economic conditions, yet he failed to address how to become less vulnerable. Instead, this government's sole response seems to be to join the madness and pursue mega-development with...

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Mr. Speaker, again I’m talking local here. It would be great to see the federal government involved, but I’m talking the Northwest Territories communities; I’m talking about our own people. We need to be doing this ourselves. We need to provide the leadership. We have small communities; these are not huge bunches of people out there. We have demonstrated productivity of our land back in the ’60s and ’50s and ’40s.

Will the Minister and Cabinet commit to putting together comprehensive plans to meet our basic needs like the food situation? Let’s start with this Minister and food.

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to follow up on my Member's statement this morning about using local resources to meet some of our basic needs. I'd like to talk about food. As everybody knows, food costs are rising rapidly around the world, and the Northwest Territories is no different. The quality of food is declining and the availability of food is going down as the impacts of climate change and other factors are felt. Our soils are less productive and so on. I think the public really expects a new approach in dealing with these sorts of things, and I think there are lots of opportunities for win-win...

Debates of , 16th Assembly, 2nd Session (day 14)

I acknowledge that I'm really dense on this stuff, but let me just read the sentence again: The GNWT intends to realign $135 million in expenditures with $75 million to be reallocated to those spending priorities. What is the difference between “realign” and “reallocate?”