Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am riding high, and I am still smiling from last week's "yes" from the Minister in regard to T4s to using pay stubs. I still want to say thank you. You are so good to us.

Mr. Speaker, positive responses send important messages that the Minister is listening to our concerns on this side of the House and trying to work with us. I wish all of the "yeses" would solve all of the problems of my constituents' housing, but, sadly, that is not the case, Mr. Speaker.

In Nunakput communities, such as Sachs Harbour, Paulatuk, Ulukhaktok, and Tuktoyaktuk, public housing units in...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Just one quick comment. In regard to your caribou monitoring up in the Delta, right in Husky Lake area, they're flying around with helicopters, they're buzzing; they shouldn't be buzzing hunters, when they're hunting. It's kind of dangerous. I just came to a couple of text messages in regard to that, so where does it say, with the department, when you're doing stuff like that, don't they have to fly at a certain level and stuff like that, when they're doing stuff like that, in regard to caribou monitoring, instead of scaring them? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Minister, on that. Moving on to disaster compensation, I had some communities, camps and stuff like that, that, due to high water, some in the Delta, some in the coastline communities, how does that work on the disaster compensation, and how much is allowable, I guess, in regard to their cabins and stuff like that? What would they get back? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Just in regards to the community harvesters program that my colleague, Mr. O'Reilly, brought up, in regard to that with the assistance program, how many communities are they assisting in that program? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. That being said, the contribution agreement, if they're not spending the money, the money is sent back. What happens to that money once it's sent back? Thanks, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Just in regards to the Take a Kid Trapping program, the uptake in that in my riding. It's really helpful with the community. Is there any plan for increases if people are not taking, like other communities are not taking advantage of that program? Are there opportunities for other communities to get more funding to do more with the communities? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Would the Minister be willing to direct her department to undertake an assessment to determine the cost of living for the people in the older units versus the newer units?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Rocky. She's coming to Tuktoyaktuk first.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister responsible for NWT housing. When the current rent scale was developed years back, was there any consideration given or any thought given to rent scaling on a newer unit to an older unit? Some of the units, like I said, were built in 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s in the communities that I represent. Is there any possibility for the department to look at a rent scale in regard to monthly rent? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

You're going to start following the best practices by some of your officers who are doing their job. I commend them and all, what they're doing, and working safely, and stuff like that, but when you're starting to do that, that's almost a Member's statement, but for myself, that has to stop. You shouldn't be buzzing hunters, and in regard to safety and that of them, and your workers. More a comment. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. In regard to that, I know there were some houses that got destroyed in the Delta. Some of my friends lost, I think, two or three houses. There was one floating down the river. I don't know how cumbersome or how hard it is to get the application in to you to get approval, and what's the timeline on that approval? Thank you, Madam Chair.