Caroline Cochrane

Actually, I just got a package from upstairs and so there actually are 11 that are destined for Hay River, so I saved myself a trip for later. At this point, that's not under consideration. The NWT Housing Corporation will be procuring these units through a public process where local businesses will have the opportunity to submit a proposal. We have to keep in mind, though, with the serious financial situation that the NWT is in, the loss of the CMHC funding in 2032, that there may not be money for the operation and maintenance for public housing. So not only was the RCMP housing to support...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm always willing to meet with the MLAs to discuss their concerns and bring it forward. As stated again, we are working with northern manufacturing firms to try to get them more competitive within the process before the spring request for proposals is released. The units actually that come up, I can't say, but I do know that there will be work to maintain them and to put them in.

The proponents that won were people the proponents come from the South Slave, the Beaufort-Delta, and the Sahtu. So they were awarded, the people that brought up the mobile homes. There will be jobs, as stated, to put them in and also to maintain them, and again, as I stated, we have 800 people on a wait list that are sleeping on couches and that are homeless, so we need to utilize the savings that we can to address the public housing needs that we have within the communities as well.

The reason that we took in the modular homes is because there was a 30 per cent savings by doing this, and that was looked at by doing the averaging of the proposals that came to us. We have 800 people on our wait list for public housing that are actually homeless and sleeping on people's couches. If we can save 30 per cent that's huge, to be able to transfer that over. The statement that it takes away jobs; there are still jobs. It's northern firms that bring the mobile units up. It's northern people that are used to put the units in. It's northern labour that's used to maintain these units.

The NWT Housing Corporation currently uses the BIP program to consider, which gives points. I'm sorry, I've lost the question. Sorry, Mr. Speaker.

To give you a timeline is, at this moment, I can't give you that, because it depends upon the budget with the federal government and the negotiations that we do with them. How I will disburse the information will be probably through the Standing Committee on Social Development, and then committee can decide how to disburse that to the Members.

At this moment, I won't be able to provide that information. We're just going down to negotiate and to talk about the need that we have within the territories, and to advocate that it not be based on just base funding, that it actually be base plus, so that they take into account the low population that we have and the vast area, and the lack of infrastructural needs. Once we have done that and we find out what the budget is when it’s released, then we will be advocating and specifying where the monies would be going.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Julie, for recognizing the visitors that you mentioned, because that was appreciated. Thanks for being here. I also want to recognize the Rotary Exchange Group that's coming out of Edmonton in the gallery today. This group includes four chaperones and 27 students from all over the world. We're really excited to have you here. Welcome.

As stated earlier, we will be having a public process were people can bid. If there is an opportunity that they can bring us in a reasonable price, then we will certainly consider that option.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don't know at this moment, but I can get the numbers and actually give it to all of the MLAs so they'll actually know how many are in each unit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.