Jane Groenewegen

Thank you. You know, to the public that's listening to this, the semantics here are off. Let’s be very clear: there is a vast difference between approving and being advised of or being notified of. I want to tell you that that's all that was going on for us over here: we were notified of it. We did not approve of it. Let’s be very clear. I mean, just because we were notified of it doesn't mean we agreed with it.

I'd like the Premier to clearly confirm that, in fact, the FMB had the authority to extend the loan guarantee and increase it on the grounds of notification to Members only.

Mr. Speaker, this loan guarantee started off at about $3 million, and it was extended and increased at several different points. I would find it very unusual if a public government could guarantee a loan for something where they did not have any say or control or knowledge of what it was being used for and that they would not be at the table.

Do we want to go from $3 million to $6 million to $9 million? Wouldn't the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation have had to come back to our government and justify an increase in our loan guarantee with what it was that they were spending the money on?

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to go back to item 7, oral questions.

Mr. Speaker, is there some requirement on the part of our government to also sign off on those schedules? Who would be signing on behalf of our government? Is there any way to delay that signing-off until we have received some of this information we’re asking for?

I move that we report progress.

Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Premier, and they are in regard to the Deh Cho Bridge project.

At least three working days ago the Premier said he was going to have FMBS pull some numbers together which might give us an idea of what it would cost our government to exit the Deh Cho Bridge agreement. He made reference to having that information “in a couple of days.” I'd like to know how close we are. How is the Premier intending to share that information with us?

Mr. Speaker, in view of the many pressing needs of the people of the Northwest Territories for everything from better education, to homes and houses in our communities, to health services — we have no doctors going into Nunakput, we heard today — in view of all those pressing needs, does the Premier not think that he has a duty to very clearly tell people, before we commit to it, that this government was entering into an obligation and a liability for $165 million?

Mr. Speaker, with this being Education Week, I, along with several of my colleagues, would like to acknowledge the educators of our Territory. In particular, I would like to recognize those who invest their skills and energy to educate the students of Hay River.

These weeks set aside to recognize specific professions are a good idea. However, if we are to truly respect and recognize our teachers, we could most sincerely do that by ensuring that our schools and their staff are adequately resourced to make the most positive impact possible in the education tasks of our children.

To that end, I...

Mr. Speaker, it is unfathomable that this Premier can say we should have a debate on one simple question alone: do we support this project or not? How could we possibly say whether we support the project or not if we did not have access to the details of it? That's like saying, “I'll buy a house, and I won't look at it or inspect it, and I won't understand any of the terms of the financing, but I'll just….” It is “Do I want a house, or don't I want a house?” That's how simply he’s putting the question.

And to the fact that, yes, we do have the information — yes, we do have it now, after the...

Mr. Speaker, the Members on the opposite side are putting words…. They are adding words. They are embellishing this. They are using things like “head on a platter,” “lying.” I never said lying.

I stood on a point of order to the fact that the Premier was offering…. He was misleading the House with the information he was giving. So if they want to describe that in whatever way they want to, that is what I said. And that is what I will set out to prove.