Frieda Martselos

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Does the Minister acknowledge and agree that Highway No. 5 should have continuous cell service installed along its entire 273 kilometres? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I have just got a couple of questions. One of them is, first of all, the Summer Student Employment Program because it comes under human resources and all of this department, so is that going to go back to its original quotas that they had? Last year, they hardly hired anyone. This is the concern that I have.

One of the items on there is the purchase of the franchise for Hay River so that it goes back into NTPC. Right? It comes under the auspices of NTPC. Is it precedent that we are paying for a $16-million purchase for a municipality? I mean, I am just wondering if we are starting to set a precedent here. You are doing this. Northlands Utilities is partly owned by all the Aboriginal groups of the Northwest Territories, and the only reason why they are doing this is because they say the cost of power is going to be less. We all know that is not going to happen. Then Hay River is buying it, and you...

This is just on the principal, and they also have all the maintenance and all of the services that they are taking care of in that building. That is on a separate line, or is that somewhere on your -- that will be in Health and Social Services. Right? Because I was looking at trying to match this with what is in Health and Social Services, and it's very unclear.

Mr. Speaker, will the Minister commit to installing cellular service along Highway No. 5 within the life of the 19th Assembly? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Does the Minister agree that installing cell service along Highway No. 5 will help enhance the highway's safety and help grow the NWT economy?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Highway No. 5 is the road between Fort Smith and Hay River, and it spans 273 kilometres. It was constructed in 1966 as a gravel road, but it is now a fully paved highway that passes through Wood Buffalo National Park. Missing from this highway, though, Mr. Speaker, is a cellular service along the entirety of the road. This is a long stretch of road to have no cellular service. I would like to enhance my colleague's request to build cellular infrastructure along Highway No. 3, servicing Behchoko to Yellowknife, and include with it a cellular service along Highway No. 5...

I disagree with one of my colleagues. I believe in the renewal strategy because we have got to start making decisions that are based on proper financial statistics and the dollars that we have and what we have to work with. The way things are done now, it's not okay. That is not the way you would run a business. That is all I have. Just a comment, no more questions.

Will the Minister commit to review the policy of core needs income threshold in order to properly account for one's level of mobility and social and safety needs for seniors?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Minister tell us if she considers the current policy of core needs income thresholds within the NWT Housing Corporation as a fair and just policy for the residents of the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.