Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There’s a one-of-a-kind community volunteer that stands out from them all and that’s the firefighters that are asked to conduct exercises in gruelling conditions and asked to risk their lives in the name of community protection. In addition, they are asked to fundraise for their equipment. In a world where firefighting equipment is becoming more costly, hamlets all across the Territories, such as Tuktoyaktuk, Sachs Harbour, Ulukhaktok and Paulatuk, have not had increases in specific firefighting budgets in the last five years.

As I expressed during previous statements in...

Mr. Speaker, I really look forward to working with the Minister and the Power Corporation to get this project started. If we could have a timeline before the end of sitting, that would be good for me. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My Member’s statement today was the excess heat in the Power Corporation in Sachs Harbour. Mr. Speaker, will the government give small and remote communities, especially in Nunakput with the highest operating and logistical costs, their fair share and seriously evaluate the use of excess heat recovery in the system? Is it possible for the government to help the community out to get the excess heat? Thank you.

I already take that as a yes and I thank the Premier.

In the community of Sachs, Mr. Speaker, the fire department is right beside the Power Corporation. It’s about probably as far as from me to the Premier. What we’re trying to do is get the excess heat system put into the fire hall so we can be able to have a heated fire truck. Mr. Speaker, I really look forward to working with Premier and the community to get this project underway.

Mr. Speaker, just on another note, will the government stop allocating the project and resources such as excess heat recovery systems to the communities that have...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Most Northerners are already aware of the cost of maintaining heaters and transporting fuel especially to small and remote communities is incredibly costly. Sachs Harbour in particular experience the largest cost of producing heat. This is why I am continuously surprised at why places such as Sachs Harbour do not have an excess heat recovery system in place.

In the past, the community of Sachs Harbour tried to maximize the waste energy such as used oil to generate heat. Unfortunately these initiatives have not been implemented well for a number of reasons.

When it comes...

It’s one thing of being addressed and one thing about getting something done. Mr. Speaker, we’re failing the students of Nunakput. Not only Nunakput, all small communities. Will this government allocate appropriate resources to address the serious problems regarding the high school dropouts to ensure that quarterly reviews and benchmarks are carefully monitored for the future on this issue, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My Member’s statement today was on the housing situation and the high school dropouts in my communities that I represent in Nunakput. Given the current way the government provides high school to students from the small communities and it’s so problematic that many students all together leave high school and go back to their home communities, will this government immediately commit funds and resources for one high school teacher per community so that the students can at least get high school courses in the community and not fall so far behind?

Well, Mr. Speaker, I’ve been here for three years and I’ve been trying to provide that information. Mr. Speaker, if we have a house in the community of Inuvik that is able to take students from the small, isolated communities and put them in a safe house to have a safe place to stay where they could do their studying and stuff to get their education in Inuvik, will the Minister commit to putting resources and dollars behind that unit in Inuvik? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, will this government conduct a thorough review to identify why so many high school students from small, isolated communities are dropping out of school? Mr. Speaker, we know the reasons already. It’s not worth going and getting another review done. This government is failing the education system in the small, isolated communities. Kids are staying home and not going to school.

Mr. Speaker, can the Minister send a Minister’s directive and tell the DEAs in the Beaufort-Delta region to work with the community of Sachs Harbour to get something done on this issue? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have heard countless discussions with my constituents regarding the lack of student boarding facilities and other resources for high school students in our small communities; resources such as expansion of grades, high school services for small and remote communities in Nunakput.

Mr. Speaker, the DEAs, the teachers and parents are working hard to reduce the dropout rates. We are working to keep kids motivated to stay in school, showing our kids the value of education. But we can’t do this alone, Mr. Speaker. There are many reasons why students in Nunakput drop out of...