Michael McLeod

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I find it kind of odd that people of Inuvik have raised a concern. Now, I thought…I will just get to my question. Will the Minister communicate to the Public Utilities Board the importance of having a public hearing before any further proposed increase to the natural gas rates in Inuvik? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is there going to be a public hearing into the rate increase proposed for the gas supplier in Inuvik? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Does a utility company not have to have a hearing before the rates are increased? I think that was my question, Mr. Speaker. Do they have to go through the Public Utilities Board to hold a hearing and not wait for the concerns of the citizens? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday I spoke to the concern from Inuvik residents about the increase in the natural gas price. One of the statements I made was the Public Utilities Board and said there was lack of evidence over concerns and had the members been living in the Northwest Territories, then I am sure they would have heard the concerns. But that is another issue for another day. I would like to ask the Minister of the Public Utilities Board, how is it that the supplier of natural gas can raise their rates without a public hearing where citizens can hear their...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t know if this is the right time for it with all these guys being up here, but I want to speak about the federal government’s attitude towards the Northwest Territories.

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Mr. Speaker, we recently heard about all the cuts that were made. A billion dollars cut for youth groups and for volunteer groups, adult literacy groups and for women’s groups. Mr. Speaker, these people put a lot of work into the job that they do. Why should we have them sitting like little pups under the table waiting for some scraps to fall off. We have money constantly leaving the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I guess, first of all, like everyone else, I should commend the commission for going out and taking the time to visit the communities and hear what the community concerns are. I am not totally convinced that all the factors were looked at when the report was compiled, the final report. However, we’ve had five commissions on electoral boundaries since 1978. The smaller communities, especially the smaller communities such as I have in my riding, have been very clear in terms of what they need to see, the concerns. It’s always seen as a case that the...

It's not like we've got ten, fifteen thousand people to look after.

I look at the ridings of some of the Members here and I see the Member for Nunakput has a wide geographical riding. He has to go all over. Same with the Member for the Sahtu. He has a lot of communities he has to cover.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are other processes that are available. People have the ability to file as interveners. The municipalities can do this, Individuals can do this, so it is not clearly demonstrated in every occasion that there has to be a hearing. In this case, there have been a number of issues brought forth by the municipality. There are also a number of issues by residents. The MLAs for that area have raised an issue. All of this information has to be compiled and looked at before there is confirmation that there will be a hearing. At this point, the Public Utilities...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I did have a chance to talk to the chair of the Public Utilities Board. At this time, it is not demonstrated that there will be a hearing. There have been a number of issues raised around the increase. A number of requests for information have been brought forward. All indications are that, more than likely, there will be one. But at this point, I can’t confirm that, absolutely, there will be one. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the process allows for interveners. There is a process that requires application to be filled in and applied for. It has to be justified. There is also a mechanism to cover some of the costs of people that are identified as interveners. A public hearing is something that would be determined by the Public Utilities Board after there is clear demonstration that there is a need for it. At this point, it is really premature in the case of the municipality of Inuvik. Thank you.