Daryl Dolynny

No, I appreciate it. I haven’t had a chance to read it, if it has indeed been given. Thank you.

Thank you. With that, I’ll go a couple lines down and I will speak to the line that is indeed called electronic medical records, EMR various, for $2.496 million. Again to my earlier question, we knew that there have been a number of project challenges, changes of the vendor system that I believe was acquired by Telehealth, delays with contract negotiations and vendor negotiations.

So, to the question, this has been something that I’ve been tracking for a number of budget cycles here in terms of the total dollars spent, total dollars lapsed, and if you start adding up the numbers, it is actually...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As a follow-up to my Member’s statement earlier today, I would like to reference from edited Hansard, March 11, 2015, where Minister Miltenberger stated, “Depending how we evolve in terms of distribution and generation, we have to look at things as I raised previously, the role and relationship of the Power Corporation. Right now it is a stand-alone power corporation with a board. Given our close working relationship and financial investment, is that the best structure, could it be structured more efficiently and effectively in any other way?”

Mr. Speaker, can the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Too bad it’s a done deal, as it appears to be here. The NWT Power Corporation, by its own statutes, is more than able to submit a bid for an open RFP process. However, this week we clearly saw political interference and action on our Minister of Finance responsible for NTPC, and our Premier jointly endorsed a ticker tape parade press release in support. The question we need to ask is why. Why would this Cabinet need to endorse and intervene with an open public process? Can the Minister explain this?

I’m a supporter of the truth, transparency and accountability, so the Minister of Finance can characterize all he wishes. I’d like to go back to November 7th to the Northern News article where the Finance Minister was openly musing about the NTPC’s demise, suggesting that NTPC be taken over by the GNWT and, as he stated, “If we hadn’t given them this $80 million, I shudder to think what the rates would be.”

Again, can the Minister elaborate why he was so keen on threatening to dissolve the NWT Power Corporation? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wanted to applaud yesterday’s Oscar performance by the Finance Minister in attempting to answer questions about NTPC’s recent attempt to enter into an RFP franchise process in Hay River.

As I said yesterday, I respect the openness, fairness and transparency of the RFP process. However, what I don’t respect is when the process is flawed and riddled with a hidden Cabinet agenda that has secretly changed our energy policy without the public’s oversight.

Now, every resident in the NWT wants cheaper power. This is a given. However, the way this government is trying to sell...

Now, months later, the Minister in his own press release of May 26, 2015, clearly and boldly supports NTPC’s participation in an RFP process in Hay River, and he points out this “could potentially lead to lower electricity rates.”

To the Minister: Why the flip-flop? In November, you’re shuddering to dissolve the Power Corporation and now you’re praising their ability to somehow lower electricity rates. I think the people are a little bit confused. Can the Minister explain this flip-flop?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to table a document that was actually buried in our legislative library and was actually never a tabled document of our House. It’s the Electrical Generation Transmission and Distribution in the Northwest Territories, A Design for Tomorrow, in December 28, 2000, referred to as the Robertson Report. Thank you.

Can the Minister of Finance please clarify that this report that he doesn’t want to answer the question to, a report that we know and we have some degree of reassurance that was done in secret by the Cabinet without any knowledge to Ordinary Members and that we assume and are led to believe was done by the same consulting firm InterGroup that is on the payroll of the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, the exact organization that the Minister is responsible for and is set to gain from the expropriation of Northlands?

All I am asking is for the Minister to clear the air and set the record...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As a follow-up to my Member’s statement, I’d like to ask the Minister of Finance, is it the intention of Cabinet to waste taxpayers’ dollars to expropriate a successful First Nation-owned business in the Northwest Territories when this money can be better spent and more responsibly used to address real issues? We heard some today here from Mr. Bromley such things as homelessness, housing, mental health or education.