Michael McLeod

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With today being International Women’s Day, I would like to recognize all women across the NWT for the contributions they make to their communities. Many times, some volunteers are needed. Women are the first to sign up. Without them, many programs would not be up and running. We have to recognize mothers who try to raise their children to make good choices in life; daughters who grow up too fast and are getting married; and grandmothers who, in many cases, end up raising their grandchildren and are the backbone in many families. Women who are in the public...

I have a hard time justifying a $41 million courthouse in Yellowknife. Granted, Yellowknife may need a new courthouse, but $41 million seems quite expensive. A leader back at home that I had a meeting with was saying that with a $40 million jail and a $41 million courthouse; they are setting us up to fail.

You don’t hear much from me regarding preventative maintenance. I was always a firm believer that preventative maintenance starts at home. We seem to be saying, well we have to educate the children, we have to educate the children, and I think we have it backwards. I think we have to...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on March 1st, the muskrat trapping season opened in the Mackenzie Delta. For years, families from the Beaufort-Delta travelled to their camps and continued to harvest muskrats. Many of us who grew up in the Delta always looked forward to ratting season so we could spend time out on the land. Mr. Speaker, schools in the Delta have elders who take students to the camp and teach them the traditional ways. With all the resource development that is going on in the Northwest Territories, it is good to see so many people still engaged in the pursuit of...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just would like to make a few general comments on the Department of Justice. I said in my Member’s statement the other day that a lot of emphasis is put on the offenders, and I stand by that statement. I don’t think that it was a very popular statement with certain people, but I received an e-mail from a lady who agreed with what I had to say and I will quote from it.

She said, "Many people feel that the title of criminal justice system is just that; a system that caters to the criminals in our society instead of placing the focus on where it belongs, which is on...

Mr. Speaker, I can’t say with any great certainty if we have the actual numbers that flow through the city of Yellowknife. I’d have to check to see if we have that information. I’m sure we have some indicators. Our information is gathered at the weigh scales and it’s at those locations that the trucks are inspected and checked for safety and for what their contents are and if they are following all the regulations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will commit to following up and if we have that information, I will certainly provide it. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to be able to say that it was totally through good enforcement activities and compliance and a good relationship with the trucking industry, but there are also indications that the levels of traffic in the area of dangerous goods have decreased as a result of the Diavik Mine being completed and also the Miramar Con Mine ceasing production. So we had some reductions in terms of the dangerous goods traffic that was going through in the year 2004. We expect it to pick up again this year.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I guess you could say we are not much further along than the last time the Member asked this question. We’ve had some discussion with the city. The city has, along with our Department of Transportation, agreed that we should be drafting and signing a memorandum of understanding. The city has taken the time to put its first draft together. We are at the stage where we are now reviewing the document. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it’s a coincidence I guess that I’ll be tabling the dangerous goods report today, as in the report it shows that we have a reduction in the number of spills. This report indicates that in 2004 we had 16 spills reported and responsibilities in the area of dangerous goods falls across a number of different departments and also the federal government. If it is on the truck on the road, there is a responsibility under our act for the Department of Transportation. If it is in a tank in the community, then it belongs to the community government and I guess...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we have 10 officers that deal with dangerous goods in the Northwest Territories located at various scale operations in Fort Liard, Inuvik and Enterprise. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act 2004 Annual Report. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.