David Ramsay

While I say we need to look forward, and I do believe wholeheartedly, we have to see this project through to completion, and we’re going to do that, once the project is complete, and I’ve made this commitment to the House in a previous sitting, is that we will go back, we’ll take an entire look at the project from its inception, so that we can learn some valuable lessons in other future large infrastructure projects around this territory. There has to be lessons learned. I believe when we go back and take a look at the process, how things unfolded and how they came together, I think that’s...

Mr. Speaker, it’s not going to cost us any more money. That is the message that we have to get out there. If the bridge wasn’t going to open this fall, we would be faced with a minimum of $9 million for various costs associated with the delay. We would also have hanging over our heads a number of claims, a myriad of claims that exist for the last couple of years with Ruskin.

What we have done is get some budget certainty and, again, that budget certainty, we have $13.7 million left in the construction budget. We are looking for another between $7.2 million and $9.5 million to add to that $13.7...

Again, the decision to negotiate the construction contract originally with Ruskin was not a decision that I made. I’m responsible for decisions that I’m making and this Cabinet is making in regard to this project. Again, in answering other Members, it’s quite clear, if you look at the options that presented themselves, what this government should do. I’m not sure what Members opposite would consider a prudent thing to do. Just throw our hands up and let the project mire in this long, drawn out claims and fight with the contractor, and be locked in a legal battle for years to come and the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Deh Cho Bridge is a major piece of public infrastructure that will serve the people of the Northwest Territories for years to come. This government intends to finish the bridge and have it open to traffic this year. I rise today to update Members and the public on steps the Department of Transportation and Ruskin Construction are taking to ensure our commitment becomes a reality.

Ruskin Construction has made considerable progress in the last six months. They have erected the two pylons, strung all the supporting cables and installed a third of the deck panels...

I certainly would be interested in doing that and I will take that back to my officials at the Department of Transportation to see how that could happen. Thank you.

With over $1.3 million of harvested fur, and that money going back into communities around the Northwest Territories, it is important if there are opportunities for other species and the need arises for workshops, for otter, in this case, that’s something that the department would certainly look at providing to communities.

Madam Speaker, the traditional economy is an important source of income for many Northwest Territories residents and one of the sectors that this government supports as part of our goal of a diversified economy. Today I would like to tell you about the remarkable sales of Northwest Territories wild furs this year and the government initiatives that support and promote this important economic sector.

Over $300,000 worth of genuine Mackenzie Valley furs were sold at the most recent wild fur sale held in North Bay, Ontario, last week. Beaver pelts, which had previously been underperforming at...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The idea conceptually of an aviation memorial and the government’s involvement in that is a good one and is something I have made a commitment to the Member previously that the government would be interested in doing.

As these things go, there are a lot of, obviously, aviation companies, businesses, families. There are a lot of issues that would have to be covered in the development of a memorial. We haven’t received a proposal from any interested party in the development of a memorial. If that was going to happen, we would certainly work with whoever it was that...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. That is something that we would give some consideration to if we were to receive such a proposal.

We’d be pleased to provide that to the Member. Last year we gave APG $300,000 and we can certainly get an accounting of that $300,000 for the Member.