Jane Groenewegen

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when we switched from fee-for-service to salary, it was intended to be a recruitment tool to get physicians to come here so that they would be able to enjoy a quality lifestyle. We could offer a definitive package which was competitive with other jurisdictions in Canada. Is the department looking now at doing a combination of fee-for-service, where there is a salary and a fee-for-service combination, something that would encourage physicians to see more patients on a daily basis? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. I want to make it abundantly clear that I know extremely well, as do the people across the North and in Hay River, that there are many challenges facing health and social services in the big picture. But I want to say that a good working relationship is the premise of why I remain very optimistic about continuing to address those concerns. I would just like to thank the Minister for his attention to those issues. Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Governance and Economic Development met on October 11, 2005, to review Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Revolving Funds Act. Following the clause-by-clause review, a motion was carried to report Bill 8 to the Assembly as ready for Committee of the Whole. This concludes the committee's general comments on Bill 8. Individual committee members may have questions or comments as we proceed. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you. For all intents and purposes, the old system of privately owned clinics run by physicians on a fee-for-service was private health care to some extent. What is the rule, or what would the opinion be now, of the Department of Health and Social Services if a physician wanted to come to Hay River or Yellowknife or Inuvik, set up a private clinic and bill the government on a fee-for-service basis? Seriously, it could run some very serious competition on the system that we have got right now. What would be the response of the department to such a proposal? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services, the Honourable Michael Miltenberger.

Probably one of the concerns we have had raised most often at our constituency office, and just from meeting people in the street and talking to them -- townsfolk of Hay River -- is the wait time to get into the Hay River Medical Clinic. That seems to be the hot topic right now in Hay River. With all due respect to our CEO and our board, they have devised a new plan where they are trying to resolve issues like backlog and avoid no-shows. Certainly...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to make a statement today that I hope will help our constituents understand a very key element of how we accomplish work on their behalf. There are many ways to approach our constituency work. We can make statements in the House, ask questions during session, write letters to Ministers and departments, send e-mails, have meetings, issue press releases, hold constituency meetings, have newspaper columns, publish newsletters, et cetera. But to be very specific, many constituents we don’t often hear from unless they have an issue with their dealings...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources today on the much talked about Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board and how it is functioning. Does the GNWT have a representative and a voice on the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board this time? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, October 9th to 15th, 2005, is Family Violence Awareness Week. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, family violence continues to be as pervasive as ever and a shadowy reality in the North.

This is an important time for the residents of the NWT to stop and reflect on the challenges presented by family violence. It is also a time for us to recommit ourselves to the reduction and elimination of family violence.

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Awareness of the issue is definitely the first step in recognizing its existence and bringing about its eradication. Awareness also means recognizing...

Members, I will now provide my ruling on a point of order raised by Mr. Roland on Thursday, June 2, 2005.

During Members’ statements, the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Roland, rose on a point of order claiming that the Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay, in his Member’s statement earlier that day had, and I quote from page 411 of unedited Hansard: “made allegations against me saying I circumvented the rules. Under 23(h) of our rules, I believe that is an infraction.”

In reviewing Mr. Ramsay’s statement as contained in the unedited Hansard, I note that the Member for Kam Lake made...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’d like to ask the Minister as well, the volunteers who provide this service out of Hay River take their training and their job of going and responding to motor vehicle accidents on the highway and providing ambulance services very, very seriously. It’s all volunteer; they train and they get some funding for training, but what the Town is concerned about and what I’m concerned about is they do this in good faith on a volunteer basis, but what about the liability aspect of it? If we don’t know whose responsibility it is, then how do we know who is liable...