Charles Dent

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m not certain that this could be characterized as a situation where information was false. There was an issue with one of the subcontractors being included in the initial response to the RFP who should not have been included. That was an issue, but it was explained as an inadvertent mistake and the company has apologized for that inclusion. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Progressive Experience Program and the Relevant Experience Program provide funding to departments and to boards and agencies that are involved in working with the government, health boards, etcetera. For instance, Yellowknife Health and Social Services does get funding in order to support students. But there is no program right now that subsidizes student summer employment for the private sector.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As far as we’re aware at Human Resources, the numbers of jobs have not been reduced. Of course, we’re not always aware of what jobs or positions departments are looking to fill. The Progressive Experience Program and the Relevant Experience Program are both being funded to the same degree and the same level of support as in previous years. So we would think that departments would find a way to hire a similar number of students. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the best of my knowledge, that has never happened. If it has happened, it hasn’t been formally transmitted to the department so that we are aware of it.

Had something like that come to our attention, it would have been an issue that would have been a very serious concern and followed up.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The department has worked with some departments to prepare the long-term plan and stands ready to work with other departments as they are prepared to work with us. It is an offer that is out there. The department would agree that it is something that we need to do. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Hackett report did say that the government organization was out of whack with comparable size organizations, but we have taken their advice and will very shortly be at exactly the structure and number of employees that they recommend. So, Mr. Speaker, we have used their guidance to move to where we should be. An organizational design specialist would work with other departments, as well, to talk about how their structure should be established.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. Mr. Speaker, this is a very exciting time of year. Over the past two weeks, graduation ceremonies have taken place at all three Aurora College campuses. Graduation ceremonies have started at schools throughout the Northwest Territories and will continue to take place over the next month.

Each graduation is a significant milestone in a person’s life. We are very proud of NWT graduates and I would like to take a moment to congratulate them on their commitment and dedication. Many have made sacrifices to reach their goals and their efforts go far beyond...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The issue has been reviewed quite thoroughly. As I’ve said, we’ve had it looked at by the Department of Justice, by the Department of Public Works and by the BIP monitoring office at ITI and we are following their advice, which is to ensure that we monitor very closely the performance of the current contractor to ensure that they are living up to the terms of the contract. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. All of the funds were transferred over as part of a global program, but afterwards we discovered that, like most landlords, the Housing Corporation had been providing either free rent or reduced rent to caretakers of buildings. So the buildings had a caretaker who looked after them. That’s a Housing responsibility; it’s not one of the income support programs. So this wasn’t really a subsidy to someone with a low income. So it’s more appropriately handled through the Housing Corporation. So since it’s a management function making sure that the caretaking of the units is...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The tuition and the book allowance were both increased within the last two years. Right now, the tuition costs easily cover the amount of tuition that is charged by the college at all the campuses here in the Northwest Territories based on the programs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.