David Ramsay

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It was at $600,000. It was set to lapse and we did our best to come up with $300,000. It was set to go away entirely. It’s a number, even at $300,000 we’re not sure how much longer we can continue to put that funding on the table, and that was our best effort on getting money into that.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the Member’s comments. There is a correlation there with the cost of energy and developing the economy and whether or not businesses have that atmosphere or the environment to succeed in. Utility costs are something that we need to pay attention to certainly. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In addition to SEED it’s one specific contribution.

I am not aware of any. I’ve got that question into the department, again, in relation to some of the comments made earlier during the sitting of the House. I will try to get a response back to the Members. There may be some confusion over some of the marketing money and how it rolls out to the organization. If that is the case, we’ll try to iron things out so that folks know that there is no holdback. That money is going to be available. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The mandate hasn’t changed. The reduction that the Member sees there is a result of the sunsetting of the mining MOU that happened. We continue to work with the three mines to move forward and try to identify a new approach. That work is going to continue.

The Member is correct; we have to look at opportunities for people to get involved in the tourism industry here in the Northwest Territories, especially in small communities, opportunities for young people to get involved, whether it’s as guides or servers or working the front desk at a hotel. It’s all in the hospitality industry and helps the tourism industry here in the Northwest Territories. Any opportunity to get some training for young people is something we should always be looking toward.

On the development of Doi T’oh Territorial Park, we are seeing some work continuing on remediation...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the Member’s observations on this. The most important thing is we continue to move forward, we find solutions, and the situation in Inuvik is not cut and dried. It is very complex. It is going to be difficult to find a solution, but I believe by working together we will find that solution and move forward.

We can’t take our eye off the opportunities like in hydro, biomass or solar. I think we continue to pursue those initiatives and eventually that reinvestment will have to happen in the area of alternative energy. We will have to identify money as...

Again, I appreciate the Member’s support. He’s shown unwavering support for the traditional economy since the time that I’ve been a Member. We’re happy at ITI to advance the traditional economy through programs like Take a Kid Trapping and the CHAP program. We’ve seen unprecedented growth in fur prices. Just for example, beaver up 111 percent, mink up 36 percent, muskrat up 84 percent. There’s tremendous opportunity for trappers around the Northwest Territories. We’ve doubled the grubstake and money that we can offer upfront to trappers in the territory. We’ve doubled the amount through the...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Our spectacular landscape, vibrant Aboriginal cultures, and beautiful arts and crafts are proving to be marketable attractions for visitors from around the world. With increased visitors, there are increased opportunities for our small and community-based business sector, which diversifies and strengthens our economy. Today I would like to speak about the progress we have made towards developing authentic Aboriginal tourism products in the Northwest Territories.

The Government of the Northwest Territories has provided significant investment over the last year to...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, the permafrost scientists would be located and working out of the geoscience office located here in Yellowknife.