Jane Groenewegen

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole back to order. Before the break the committee indicated that we were going to start with Bill 12. I’d like to ask Minister Jackson Lafferty at this time if he would like to deliver his opening remarks. Minister Lafferty.

Minister Lafferty.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess I can go along with looking into this, but it sounds like a very, very costly thing and there are, maybe call me old-fashioned, but there’s a few words that are being used here by my colleagues that, kind of, you need trained educators to look after our babies from zero to three. I just have a mental picture of somebody going from the daycare to the hospital and taking the baby out of the nursery and taking it over to the daycare. I don’t know. What about moms or what about parents and dads and moms that want to stay home and look after their kids? When you...

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Next for general comments I have Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you. I’d like to ask Minister Miltenberger if he is challenging the decision-making process provided by the Public Utilities Board of the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. General comments. Next I have Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I heard my colleague from Yellowknife Centre talking about the cost of power in Yellowknife, feeling that Yellowknife residents are being singled out in some way and not getting the same kind of subsidy as other communities in the Northwest Territories.

Without the benefit of unedited Hansard, I’d like to ask the Minister responsible for the Power Corporation, did the Minister say that the high cost of power in Hay River and Yellowknife had something to do with the franchises operated by Northland Utilities? Thank you.

I’ll ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to please escort the witness into the Chamber.

Minister Lafferty, for the record, could you please introduce the additional witness at your table.

My wish is that a group of mature, seasoned Senators could take a lesson from what’s happened, to agree going forward there needs to be more clear definition brought to the roles and responsibilities of Senators which activities are eligible for claiming expenses from the Senate and which are not, a revisiting of the rules around primary residence and capital living allowance and a team of administrators of those allowances and indemnities that would not allow Senators to be reimbursed for claims that they are not eligible for.

My wish is also that this could be accomplished before the lives...

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. General comments. Next I have Ms. Bisaro. Oh, I’m sorry. Minister Lafferty.