Charles Dent

Mr. Chairman, this is negotiated as part of the contract with the NWTTA, so there is no discretion. This is an agree-to amount that is stipulated in that contract.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I, like the Member, am interested in ensuring that we have adequate programming space for all our students in the Northwest Territories, and one of the first things I did after becoming Minister was to take a look at what we had in terms of leases and where we might have opportunities opening up. So I asked the department when the lease would be expiring on Northern United Place and finding out that it was coming up in a few years, directed that they work with the college and Public Works and Services to do an examination of what we should be looking at, whether it...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Perhaps, Mr. Chairman, what I could do is if the interest of the committee is travel, what I do have is I have a listing of travel broken out for the whole department, and perhaps I could just run through that listing. This wouldn’t be under this task then, this would include all of it, so you get the total travel budget all at once if you’d like, you can tell where it is coming from. But I could break it out for the committee all at once here, and that might be the easiest way to do it.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The curriculum should reflect the local culture and history all the time and it can. What we can do in curriculum development is make sure the suggestions are made for specific things to consider when dealing with curriculum.

The issue of treaties has been raised by other people. I think it’s one there is a real interest in seeing there be something mentioned in school about treaties and it would certainly be appropriate in the social studies course. At the current time the curriculum for kindergarten to Grade 9 social studies is under review, and we can make sure...

I take the Member’s comments and would agree with him that museums are an important aspect of life in the North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good morning. Tomorrow, Saturday, March 20th, will culminate a week of international celebration as Francophones and Francophiles throughout the Northwest Territories join with people in India, Senegal, and Egypt, among others, to honour their culture and heritage through Francophonie Day.

(Translation) This day was created in 1998 as a way for the ensemble of people who speak the French and Creole languages to celebrate their common bond. Honoured over five continents and uniting over 170 million speakers, French speakers join together with the United Nations to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can’t answer if it’s been on the same percentage that the NCBS has increased, but in fact the food rates have increased this winter to reflect increased costs. We do an annual survey now and adjust the food basket rates on a regular basis rather than waiting until we get way behind. I would be quite prepared to provide the Member with what the percentage increase might be in the program.

I can also say that I’ve had some discussion with the department, and the fact that the NCBS has increased is one of the aspects we’re considering and will be discussing as part of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the national child benefit supplement has three purposes to it, as posed by the federal government. One is to create attachment to the workforce, another is to reduce child poverty, and the third is to reduce overlap and duplication of programs and services. I can tell the Member that I was at the table when this was initially set up and that one of the biggest concerns from the federal representatives there was in fact making sure that the program was aimed at people who are working and to ensure that there was an attachment to the workforce. The way...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In comparison to other jurisdictions, the amount of support that is provided to a parent who is staying home to look after children is very good in the Northwest Territories. The feeling is that the program, as it’s designed, in fact, does accommodate that desire. For instance, those jurisdictions like Newfoundland which have allowed the straight flow through, even though there is a high cost of living in many of the smaller communities in Newfoundland and Labrador, their level of support is nowhere near what we provide to individuals living in the Northwest Territories...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. Mr. Speaker, on the first day of this session, Mr. Yakeleya rose to speak about celebrating Aboriginal Languages Month. He spoke with passion about his own language and culture and how important that has been shaping the person he is today.

I would also like to recognize the importance of Aboriginal Languages Month.

Mr. Speaker, this month we celebrate the important role language and culture play in the daily lives of many of our residents. Aboriginal languages provide a way for aboriginal people to maintain and express their culture, traditions and...