Robert Bouchard

Thank you. I, too, appreciate the hard work by the department and all the organizations that are trying to clean up the area.

My next question is: Does the department expect bringing in any additional equipment from other regions to aid the Hay River and Enterprise area? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since early Monday morning, the Hay River area has been seeing some extreme weather conditions. Each of the past three nights, the area has seen three to six inches of heavy, wet snow. This has been causing problems with power lines, roads, airports and highways.

Thank you. My final question to the Minister will be about the department’s added hours. Does the department continue to have additional hours on a regular basis in the wintertime as opposed to the demands where they would be less in the summertime? Does the department have longer hours for operation for the highway equipment operations in the wintertime? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I indicated in my speech, Hay River and the Hay River area are seeing an extreme storm right now. My question today will be for the Minister of Transportation.

Can the Minister give me an update on the Hay River area and how they’re keeping up with the storms to date?

The department has indicated they are doing an assessment of the Hay River area and the future needs. I would urge the department to complete that assessment and make sure that this facility is going to be a facility that takes care of the needs for the next 50 years.

Will the Minister commit to completing that assessment and making sure that if Hay River’s needs for the next 50 years are 15 beds, that Hay River looks to that type of facility? If the needs are only 10, that’s fine, but the needs may be even higher, especially with the aging population of the Northwest Territories. Will the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I indicated in my Member’s statement, I find it unbelievable that the Department of Health does not have a matching line item for the 10 long-term beds that are currently planned to be removed from the new health centre. My first question for the Minister is: Will the community of Hay River be protected from having to move its seniors to other communities?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As time is of the essence in this project and the project is being constructed as we speak, when will the department place these essential 10 long-term beds in their budget process so I can see it and the community of Hay River can see it on the long-term budget process, knowing that it is going to be removed from the community within the next few years?

I would like to ask the Minister of Health why there was no matching line item for these 10 long-term beds when they were being removed from the new health care facility. I understand the concept of not putting any in the health care facility, but why was there no line item to replace these in some other facility or add a facility?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we have been working on the infrastructure budget for 2013-2014, I’d like to voice my concerns over what is not in the budget or in any projections.

Construction of the new health centre in Hay River has begun. This facility will not have 10 long-term beds that are in the current facility. This is unbelievable. I understand the department’s justification that long-term beds are not effective in a hospital setting for both the patient and costs. My biggest problem is that the department has known for some time now that this facility will not have long-term beds...

My other question would be about the facility in Hay River, the health centre in Hay River. How long has that been on the budget of the Government of the Northwest Territories in the planning, and how long has it been on the budget as far as the planning of that facility?