Kevin A. Menicoche

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I believe it was Mr. Ramsay who had a debate item that kind of interested me. It was with the graduation rates and course completion rates and that’s something that I’ve been dealing with the Minister on over the last couple of weeks, especially in the smaller regional centres. I’m sure I agree with the Minister and the department, that whatever we can do to improve graduation rates and course completion rates would be a boon to our young people, to our schools and to our communities.

I came upon a gap, perhaps in the system and maybe the Minister can address...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The committee wishes to consider Bill 19, Appropriation Act, 2005-2006, with Education, Culture and Employment. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Just to take it away from the national level again and just bring it back to, say, Jean Marie River, their need is four units. When can the Minister assure Jean Marie River that it’s not going to be 10 years from now, but three years from now or two years from now? Does the Minister have the ability to do that? Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The Minister details about how resources would be allocated and now, the next logical question, Mr. Speaker, is what is the placement plan or the long-term plan of placing these units in the communities? What resources have they got earmarked for the Nahendeh riding communities? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker…(English not provided)

Mr. Speaker, I wish to speak with you today about the need in Nahendeh for housing; housing for singles and single parents in particular. Mr. Speaker, in my constituency, 25 percent of our households have a core need for housing. This means that there is an issue with suitability, adequacy or affordability with about 200 of the 754 households surveyed by the Housing Corporation; or, in the most simple terms, the types of housing we have now is inappropriate, too expensive, and there is just not enough of it. Yet over the next three years, Fort Simpson will...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That concludes my comments with regard to income security. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I beg the Minister’s pardon if I offended him in any way, but my immediate concern is that the Public Housing Program…I must have missed something because that’s how I understood it to work, that the people currently getting mortgage assistance in that area would be going to ECE for subsidies. The Minister is telling me this is not the case. Why is the subsidy money in ECE, Mr. Chairman?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank the Minister for that answer. It certainly seems appropriate that department officials had to have some input into this. Of course, the community is going to have some input. I don’t know if the Minister is the lead department for this, but at one point the community is going to have to have input because in my constituency meetings, people were saying it’s a shame to lose this building. In fact, if it can’t be a government office, can we just keep it? Can we maintain it for a training facility, because it’s ideal for that kind of stuff? I don’t know if it...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. (English not provided)

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to congratulate the Department of Transportation on their efforts to build an airport in Trout Lake. During the week of February 7th to 11th, the department’s senior officials visited the community to discuss the possibility of this great opportunity. It is well known that the current location of the airstrip does not align with the prevailing winds. As it stands, many trips are cancelled because pilots are unable to manoeuvre with the crosswinds. It is dangerous for everybody, Mr. Speaker, when pilots -- on the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The committee wishes to consider Bill 19, Appropriation Act, 2005-2006, Health and Social Services.