Statements in Debates
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have to concur with the honourable Member to the point that there is definite need in the community. Just to get back to the accommodations set up in the community, I know that there are a lot of professionals that are all living in one unit. That is probably due to the fact that they are probably in a social housing unit, and with the rent scale they have in place one person in each unit can never afford the amount of rent. I wanted to ask the honourable Minister that when these professionals start moving out of the social housing units that were for social...
I am wondering what measures and contract obligations that these southern firms would have to ensure that these units will last at least two to five years, and that this portable housing will not have to be replaced by some more affordable housing in the short term. Mr. Speaker, thank you.
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Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am going to raise the important issue relevant to seniors and the contributions they make to our society. I met with the Seniors’ Society last week here in Yellowknife and also another elders’ committee from Lutselk’e yesterday.
Although these meetings were bound together under different circumstances, the underlying points raised during these discussions were very similar: issues pertaining to health services, acute and outpatient care, and community health representation, just to name a few, and many other issues related to housing and seniors’ and elders’...
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just one quick question on the Public Works and Services. I know the renovations for this office space, is that going to…Oh, okay, I'm answering my own question here, I just didn't read it. I didn't see the Human Rights Commission being in there. I just saw it now. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I guess as everybody in the room is well aware, over the past couple of weeks when we were going over the budgets, that forced growth consumes millions and millions of government dollars that we have to deal with. A lot of points came up by a lot of Members saying that maybe we should put some belt tightening measures on forced growth. Something like this tax initiative, although it's regrettable that I would have to support something like this, I know that our fiscal framework taken into consideration is something that we're just going to have to do.
All I'm just...
Thank you, Madam Chair. I have to concur with the other Members that on the short time that we’ve been allowed to review and respond to these taxation changes and I can appreciate the public’s concerns with the changes as far as the Chamber of Commerce and the Construction Association are concerned.
Just to comment on some of the newer Members’ concerns about the business plan review and such. I have to give some consideration to the government’s staff that has probably reviewed a lot of the options that are being brought forward today in this committee with the concerns about lowering the...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just to realize what the Member was eluding to that many people in the NWT live in trailer units, Mr. Speaker, I am well aware of that. But a lot of these trailer units are older units and they are put together by very big nails. The newer units are usually a little more cost effective and, therefore, they are put together with three-quarter inch staples. I wanted to ask the Minister about the affordable housing crisis that he is addressing, and the communities that these affordable housing units will be accommodating to probably professionals that have full-time...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to ask the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation about the issue of the housing units that will be going into Deninu Kue and these other communities in the NWT. On the question of affordable housing versus maximum benefits in relation to this whole tendering process and the BIP and what not, my question really has nothing to do with the business incentive policy, although the community does welcome the opportunity to have a little bit of employment in that market and in getting site preparation and that stuff done for these units....
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Would there be any change in the levels of funding for these programs?
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just want to ask the Minister if he would be supportive of an initiative that would develop some kind of an endowment fund, something like the Chair was referring to in a different department, that industry could contribute to and education would support and work to develop some kind of a revolving fund, an endowment fund, that would allow students to seek career development, higher education, in other countries. Institutions would specialize in areas of real professional development and expertise.