Daryl Dolynny

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In business when one is faced with limited cash flow and facing tough expense control, you look at your balance sheet to find ways to leverage your assets. In all cases, whether you’re in government or in business, you strive to isolate financial risk and look at the balance sheet of self-financing your paid service models.

One such asset and paid service model is our Yellowknife Airport, to which the current governance is in dire need of a shake-up. Mr. Speaker, let me explain.

The Yellowknife Airport is under the care and regulations of the GNWT. This entity is at...

Thank you, Mr. Moses. Minister Abernethy, do you have witnesses you’d like to bring into the House?

We will commence after a short recess.

---SHORT RECESS

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee has been considering Bill 38, An Act to Amend the Jury Act, and Bill 41, An Act to Amend the Partnership Act, and would like to report progress and that Bill 38, An Act to Amend the Jury Act, is ready for third reading and that Bill 41, An Act to Amend the Partnership Act, is also ready for third reading as amended. I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Over the course of the last year or so the issue of job vacancy has been talked about in the House. It’s been literally quizzed to death, you know, for the lack of a better use of the terminology and statistics. We have about 1,000 jobs that are vacant – I’m using whole numbers here – in which at any given time there’s a number of them that are being listed to fill.

So for basic math, let’s say 500 of those jobs perpetually are not being filled during the course of the year. Now, it might be high or it might be low, that’s not the point, at an average wage rate of $100...

Thank you, committee. I will ask you to turn to page 89, Environment and Natural Resources, department total, $85.981 million. Agree?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee has been considering Tabled Document 188-17(5) and Bill 43, An Act to Amend the Borrowing Authorization Act. I would like to report progress and that Bill 43, An Act to Amend the Borrowing Authorization Act, is ready for third reading. I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. For that we’ll go to Ms. Craig.

Thank you, Mr. Schauerte. Ms. Bisaro.

Thanks for the clarification. I would assume that a government is doing its due diligence when their times are tough, as we’re finding ourselves near this fiscal cliff and wall of worry and debt wall. I’m assuming the government has gone to every one of its cupboards, department cupboards, and looked at any lapsed spending, any sunsets that weren’t used, any re-profiled funds that may or could be used to help mitigate short-term cash position.

Maybe the department can explain what was done in order to really do a sweeping effect across departments in terms of trying to find that type of money...