Michael Miltenberger

There hasn’t been any target investment in the amount of $632,000 that’s already been approved for 2013-14 in ongoing. As we look at improving and having a process that better reflects the concerns of the Legislature, I give the Member acknowledgement of her interest in this issue both in health, but across government, forest firefighting, for example, of making the base more reflect the reality of the operation as opposed to having to come back. As we identify these areas, that’s what we’re attempting to do going forward here. Thank you.

I understand, having talked to some of the biologists and such, that anthrax is a treatable condition if you capture it in time, but there’s no inoculation that I’m aware of. In cases with wild roaming herds, we are responding late in the day after we, through our aerial surveys in this case, happened to find some dead bison that turned out to have anthrax, so we were playing catch-up the whole summer trying to identify the outbreak in the animals after the outbreak had already occurred. The short answer would be, no, I don’t believe there’s an inoculation for anthrax.

My understanding is that this is basically an accumulated amount, that over the last number of years the costs have been absorbed within the operation. It’s no longer sustainable, hence the request that’s now before this House. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The final accounting is just being concluded. There is going to be some under expenditure. The money will be identified. Of course, it’s been voted by FMB that that money is coffered. That will be fully accounted for and returned to the treasury. Thank you.

Madam Chair, I would ask if the Member would give me the number, I would be able to get you an answer.

I don’t believe there’s any biomass projects yet in Deline. One of the considerations would have to be to do the costing of the shipping in of the biomass, and compare that all-in economic cost to that of the diesel. I still think it would demonstrate a savings, but I don’t believe there are existing biomass projects in Deline in government infrastructure.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have with me Mr. Michael Aumond, deputy minister of Finance; Mr. Russ Neudorf, deputy minister of Transportation; and Mr. Sandy Kalgutkar, deputy secretary to the FMB.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am here to present Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2012-2013. This document provides for a decrease of $1.26 million for capital investment expenditures in the 2012-2013 fiscal year.

Major items in this supplementary estimates include:

$300,000 for the Department of Public Works and Services for investments under the NWT Energy Plan for energy upgrades to the Grandfather Ayah School in Deline;

$375,000 for the Department of Justice to complete the renovations of Courtroom No. 1 at the Yellowknife Courthouse;

a transfer of $3.9 million from...

Thank you. What I did say was that we are of the mind, as a government, that it’s not an appropriate time to be adding new tax burdens onto Northerners, that we struggle with cost of living issues in all of our communities, that it’s a challenge to businesses as well. So what we want to foster is a strong economy, which will give us more revenue as opposed to us as a government putting more taxes out there. So our focus has been on trying to put in infrastructure, look at how we do business to be as supportive as possible in an economically and environmentally sustainable way to encourage...

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Monfwi, that Bill 8, An Act to Amend the Securities Act, be read for the third time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.