Caroline Cochrane

Thank you, Mr. Chair. At this point, we know exactly what we spent on the program. We do know that there has been low uptake on the program. We have not done a formal evaluation, but we can pull together a report that we can actually share with the Members. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. On my left is Tom Williams, the president and CEO of the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. On my immediate right is Mr. Jim Martin, the vice-president of Finance and Infrastructure Service. On the far right is Franklin Carpenter, who is the vice-president of Programs and District Operations. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Sorry, Mr. Chair, I will need clarification of the question.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm a bit confused. I'm going to try to answer it if possible. So again, we're open to a lot of different areas so that we can look at home ownership. If the survey comes back and says that people want us to look at cash and carry to the bank, then we'll look at that, but at this point we aren't looking at doing a new program that addresses giving out mortgages. We are more looking at using the available stock that we have and turning those over into home ownership packages for people, people who have been constantly paying their rent, have been showing that they are...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Actually, the cooperative housing unit that the Member does speak to, I used to live in that just a couple of years ago, so I am very familiar with that unit that he addresses, and it is a nice unit. We, the NWT Housing Corporation, actually provides partial funding for those, as well. We provide funding to most of the cooperatives. In all honestly, I had never thought about that, but I am hoping that it will come up within the housing survey. Now that it has been brought to my attention, I will consider that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am really glad that the Member asked that question because I thought it was, but the actual answer is between 4 and 19.5 per cent and it is maxed out at 19.5 per cent. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you for asking the clarifying question.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The transitional rent supplement program, like I said, was not one of my favourites. The uptake on that program was only a utilization of 30 per cent, so we have done a reduction, the $30,000 reduction, of year one of year three. Again, that money will be reprofiled. The transitional rent program will no longer exist. It will become, within six months, a rent supplement program. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I will consider the suggestion brought forward, and even though it was not suggested, I was hoping it would come out. We are looking at other options for seniors. I did have seniors come to me since I have been the Minister and state to me that it is not only a matter of accessing affordable housing, it is a matter of accessing safe housing. So I have had a number of seniors come to me and say that they do not feel safe in some of the apartment buildings in this community, and so we are looking at perhaps doing a pilot project where we can actually blend seniors...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. That is a question that I am hoping that will come out with more ideas within the survey. I don't have all the answers, but I am open to any feedback. If I do not see it in the survey, if the Members have ideas on how I could do that better, then I am more than open to hearing their feedback. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, yes. Currently, we have budgeted in our budget $4,410,000, and it's the same as it was for the last year. At this point in time, which we're almost at the end of the fiscal year, we only have expended about half of that money. So I don't know if the issue is that we need to put more money in or the issue is that we need to focus on a communication plan, that we actually have to let people know that it's out there. So I don't think it's appropriate to put more money into a program that is being under-utilized until we see if there is an actual need for it. That is, I take...