Jackson Lafferty

I did highlight the additional funding that’s included to provide for base rent and mortgage expenses. That’s new programming dollars that we’ve offered to the daycare establishments. I would reiterate that we are continuing to work with FMB to work with NGOs in the communities because we need to continue working with them in this respect. The Member has talked about similar funding or contributions we provide to the schools based on enrolment. Those are the types of discussions that we’re having currently with FMB. Although it’s taken some time, we want to have a good model that we can...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. The Member did bring that to my attention a while ago about distribution of cheques into the small community, whether it be some sort of non-cash item in the stores. Some family members are not getting the actual food that they should be getting. Those are the areas we are seriously looking at, how we can distribute a certain amount, whether it be the cheques or vouchers to the stores, so that the families can certainly benefit from it. I’m glad the Member is raising this issue because it is important to us, the well-being of the children and the community.

The Member can look at it as a technical problem, but I see some challenges there. Through challenges it creates opportunities to work with. Certainly we will be presenting to standing committee once we work out the logistics within our Department of ECE, because there is federal funding as well. We need to work with FMB as well. Once that has been developed, I am more than willing to commit to the standing committee to present to them.

This Minister is very serious on this particular matter. It’s not only us that deals with the programming dollars. We deal with the federal government. We deal with our own internal FMB as well. They’re doing cost analysis. We continue to work with that. As I stated earlier, we continue to improve our programming dollars. This is one area we are seriously looking at on how we can continually provide important services without any disruption. We will continue to have the dialogue.

Certainly early childhood and the language nests, more specifically, has been sunsetted by the federal government. We continue to pick up that program through our territorial government. That has been our commitment. We believe that it is an important piece of program that we need to continue with. New Initiatives Program increased funding in the early childhood. So those are the areas we continue to improve and increase our programming dollars. We continue to monitor those again. We will continue to work with the Members on updating them on current status and where we’re going at the next...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife South, that Bill 7, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act, be read for the third time. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

The daycare funding is based on the enrolment of the children in the daycare, similar to the school operation. We continue to monitor that. We talked about it within our department how we can improve in those areas where students may be missing for up to five days. I guess you can say the organizations get less funding due to that fact. But we will continue to look at that. Certainly we continue to re-evaluate our position, our programs within our current system, again, highlighting what kind of penalization is there for an organization and how we can improve in those areas. We continue to...

Mahsi, Mr. Chairman. To my left I have Mark Aitken, director of legislation, and Gary McDougall, director of legal registries. Mahsi, Mr. Chairman.

Certainly the program will be rolled out within a couple of weeks, three weeks. Certainly we will continue to monitor the program itself and how the program is going, and also looking out for other jurisdictions and how their program is doing, with mandatory or without mandatory. We can probably say late fall we’ll certainly look at this as if it could be mandatory at that time. Certainly we need to have some time to deliver the program, see how it turns out. From there we’ll certainly decide to move forward and we’ll certainly give the standing committee an update at that time.

Mahsi, Mr. Chairman. I am pleased to speak to you about Bill 5, the Professional Corporations Act.

This bill would allow self-employed members of regulated professions to incorporate where they are not now permitted to do so; provided that the member’s professional responsibilities are not affected.

Lawyers, accountants and most health professionals may not currently incorporate, as the limited liability of an ordinary business corporation is inconsistent with their professional responsibilities. While members of these professions accept that liability for professional errors or misconduct...