Charles Dent

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is just a point of clarification. The current rules of the program don’t allow for a $1,200 exemption. The beginning of September the 1st, up to $1,200 or $1,200 of unearned income can be exempted by a family. That is in addition to the $400 per family plus 15 percent of all earnings above that that can be exempt from the program. So the program is changing significantly from a program of simply last resort to one that is intended to better support people. But any program like this where government subsidies are given out is a balance between affordability...

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker and honourable colleagues. I am also pleased that it has given Tyler an opportunity to experience our schedule and help him understand why I have missed so many of his hockey and little league baseball games and parent/teacher meetings over the years.

As I am moving on to other pursuits, not retiring, as was reported in the newspaper, I expect to make more of those events. I know that Tyler looks forward to me being able to get to more of his games, but I am not sure he is looking forward to me being around more to make sure that his homework is done every night.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Weledeh, that Bill 14, Employment Standards Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the reason we did this is, as Members in this House know, we have $120 million that goes out every year as direct subsidies to people in the Northwest Territories. That is before we add the $6 million that we are putting into the Income Support Program next year. We were in a situation where we had 17 programs run by seven different departments that did not mesh. We had situations where a person would earn, or a family would earn, an extra dollar and have $200 clawed back by either the housing authority or by income support. We need to find a way to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I have said several times in this House, the assessment of how the program is working is done on a continual basis. The senior management get together regularly. The deputies from the departments get together regularly. The Minister of the Housing Corporation and I discuss issues as they arise, as well. So we are satisfied that we have found ways to deal with all of the issues that have come up, up to this point. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In our Assembly, we rely on Pages for much of the efficiency we achieve, such as it is, in the conduct of our business. They deliver copies of motions and statements, and they make sure we have fresh water always available. But, Mr. Speaker, probably the most important function for Pages in our Assembly is carrying notes between Members in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I doubt the public has any idea how much is done by way of notes between Members while we are in session. When we are at work here in the House, decorum requires we spend most of our time in our seats. So...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Bill 19, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No. Before the transfer of the subsidy, I can’t tell you how many times, in my 16 years in this House, I have heard Members stand up opposite and go after the Minister of Housing for problems with assessments. So it isn’t something that is new. There are always going to be people who are having difficulty with how their assessments are done or how they are dealt with, but what we have now is a process where we are moving towards more consistency in how our program is being applied across the Northwest Territories. After the transfer, we discovered all sorts of...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In fact, we do deal with local housing authorities and LHOs. We bring people together who are working on the front line to tell us the problems they are running into. The numbers of complaints that we are hearing have diminished tremendously. We are not getting very many complaints at all. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.