Jane Groenewegen

Mr. Speaker, your committee would like to report progress and, Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with. Thank you.

You are making a motion to report progress?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I could see where the six-month residency criteria would be very valuable if it was addressing people moving from the South or from other jurisdictions into the Northwest Territories. Of course, you shouldn’t be able to land in town one day and move into public housing the next. I can see that. But I am more concerned about the availability of housing on a short-term basis on the understanding that housing is available. I understand that if there is a long waiting list and every unit is full, that’s one thing, but I think there is something that should be looked at...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So then for example, the six-month residency requirement that I referred to in my Member's statement today, would that be something that is a rule that is developed at the local level or is that something that would be put in place by the corporation? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, we have tenant relation officers and income support workers who should be in a position to warn people about the consequences of leaving public housing, and also not paying their rent and leaving debts owing to housing authorities. Mr. Speaker, people generally want to avoid being homeless if they can help it. I believe that, and they need to make informed choices, but, Mr. Speaker, they also need to know the rules. Public housing is usually people who are in difficult circumstances, and it needs to be viewed as such. We have...

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The motion is in order. It’s not debatable. All those in favour of the motion? The motion is carried. I will now rise and report progress.

I will call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, would the Minister be able to relate to the problem that we have when somebody moves from one NWT community to another? So if they are living in Fort Resolution in public housing and they move to another location and apply for public housing, that six-month residency may create a problem. In another instance I referred to is a single mother who goes south or goes to another community to upgrade their education, comes back to the home community for the summer, is ineligible now -- they’ve left that public housing unit -- for public housing. Does the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation. Mr. Speaker, each of the communities have local housing authorities and subsequently they have boards which govern their activities. I would like to know how much say or how much input the Minister or the NWT Housing Corporation has into the rules applied to tenants living in and applying for public housing in the communities. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to use my Member’s statement to speak about the upcoming circle of northern leaders meeting being held on the Hay River Reserve. This is a new idea on the part of our government. The intent is to engage other northern leaders by including them in helping us set our agenda for the next four years.

There is a lot going on in our territory on many fronts. We are on the verge of changes in governance as some aboriginal governments take on new roles and responsibilities in their regions. There is much activity on the economic front as we...