Robert Bouchard

Thank you, Mr. Neudorf. Mr. Blake, do you have some follow-up questions?

Thank you, Minister. We’ll go to Mr. Guy.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just have a few quick comments. I’d like to give some more updates as we go along and I’ll go through some of the issues that I think are important and that I’d like to see more information on.

I was dealing with the Hay River Woodland Manor and we know that there’s an expansion being planned, being designed as we speak. Obviously, I think there’s going to be some carry-over from that money because we never broke ground this year, and if I could get an update on how that currently stands and when we expect to put the shovels to the ground for that project.

I know we’re...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister led me right into the question that I wanted to ask him. He talks about a federal responsibility versus 25 percent territorial.

In the discussion about infrastructure and the creation of new roads, wasn’t that a federal responsibility? We are currently building roads in the Northwest Territories, new roads, and we are putting in 25 percent. Where is our at least 25 percent for dredging? Why are we diverting this issue of dredging? Yet, with other things when the federal government’s responsibility is there, we are willing to put territorial money into it.

So, the question I have is: The Minister indicated he wrote a letter in February and we haven’t followed up. We haven’t had any other conversation with any other federal Minister responsible for the dredging of the Hay River. I just want to confirm that.

Has the Minister had any conversation with the federal government about the dredging since his letter of February? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Four years ago we were elected to this House. One of the first statements I made was about dredging of the Hay River and the requirement for this. This issue has been before this Assembly for more than a decade to look at Hay River dredging, and our government continues to ignore that. Our government keeps saying, federally it’s a responsibility. Again, the Premier makes a statement about key infrastructure today, and he talks about a whole bunch of different highways, a whole bunch of road construction, which is also supposed to be a federal responsibility.

I’m getting...

I guess I have concern with the priority of the Hay River dredging. It seems to be way low on the GNWT and Minister’s mind. I’m wondering why the Department of Transportation just went through a whole process through Build Canada, through infrastructure funding and the Hay River dredging isn’t on that agenda for the 10-year plan for the infrastructure under Build Canada in partnership with the GNWT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In follow-up to my Member’s statement on dredging, I will have questions for the Minister of Transportation. Last session I asked the Minister to follow up with working on dredging.

I just wanted to ask the Minister, has he taken any steps to getting any closer to dredging of the Hay River? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, will support this point of privilege. I think the debate is not whether we are helping our residents and not seeing a 25 percent increase; I think it was how it was done and how it was rolled out, and communication has been broken down in our consensus government and this is just one example of it.

As Regular Members, we’re finding out information after the fact. We’re finding out information that’s being discussed by Cabinet, by that side of the House, without communicating with us. The whole concept behind consensus government is that we’re included in that...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is for Minister Miltenberger. Can the Minister describe to me what the GNWT rate equalization program is?