David Ramsay

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Premier, the Honourable Joe Handley, Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation. Mr. Speaker, the first question I have for the Premier is why did the Power Corporation spend close to $500,000 on two gas microturbines, which were designed by Mariah Energy and installed at the community recreation centre in Inuvik without some type of warranty on these microturbines, Mr. Speaker? Can the Premier advise the House of why there was no warranty on these pieces of equipment? Thank you.

Okay. General comments to Minister’s Statement 48-15(3). Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to hearing the response from the Minister on the statistics. I’m just wondering if the Minister is aware that there are graduates from the Teacher Education Program in the Northwest Territories that can’t find employment and that some of the larger district education authorities are still recruiting teachers from southern Canada in large numbers, Mr. Speaker. Is the Minister aware of this fact? Thank you.

Does committee agree that consideration of Ministers' statements 48, 49 and 54 are concluded? Mr. Zoe.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, the Honourable Charles Dent. I go back to the Premier’s address of January 2001, where the government-of-the-day was intent on showing northern students that they were valued, and I’ll quote, “We intend to guarantee employment to every graduate from a recognized nursing or teaching program. In addition, by the end of March, we expect to have a program in place to guarantee a term position to every new NWT post-secondary graduate qualified in certain other priority occupations.” Mr...

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Mr. Premier.

This employee then went on to his interview for entrance into the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and, Mr. Speaker, they passed that personal interview with flying colours.

How can the Minister of Justice still maintain that there are not problems in human resources at the North Slave Correctional Centre? This individual I'm speaking about is deemed worthy of protecting the interests of national security; however, they cannot get a full-time position at North Slave Correctional Centre.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Mr. Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will stick to the bill. I think it goes back to an accountability factor, Mr. Speaker, and to be quite honest with you I think in this instance the government has shown a lack of accountability, not only to the Regular Members for lack of consultation with them, but to the public. The public deserves better. This is an expenditure of $3.4 million right now and $6.6 million into the future. I think the public deserves better, Mr. Speaker, and I think the Regular Members deserve better and I would put the government on notice that we are going to be watching what...

Thank you, Madam Chair, and I thank the Premier for his response and I’m glad to hear that the Prime Minister might have a steady hand in overseeing this and that the three northern Premiers will be working together on this committee to try to develop this strategy. But the Prime Minister six months ago put Minister McLellan in charge of the pipeline file and to be honest, Madam Chair, we haven’t seen Ms. McLellan in the Northwest Territories since she’s been appointed to overlook that file. To me, that is wrong.

Again, I’m sceptical of Ottawa of what they say and what they do and I think...