Sandy Lee

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it gives me pleasure to recognize a local accountant, housewife and keen observer of this House, Ms. Connie Henderson. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Mr. Speaker, I would like to know if he could give support in principle that if the need is found in this study, that he would look positively at giving operational funding that he would have to spend as the Minister of Health anyway for seniors. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This has been in the books for a very long time and I guess if the study is going to be done at the end of November, we have to wait for this. But I’m concerned that the Minister has not indicated enough commitment to seeing the results of the study being implemented. Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister is well aware that YACCS is not looking for capital funding, it’s not looking for a handout, it’s only looking for the commitment from the government to pay for the operating costs that the government would otherwise have to do anyway. So would the Minister, if there...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It appears that the Minister is picking out only one of the problems. He said yesterday in Hansard, page 2196, and I quote, “we did have some logistical problems by way of transportation, barging, looking at sites for these units, gravel was a problem…and power hookup.” Mr. Speaker, I say that they had problems at every corner and every aspect. I have to ask the question, this decision was made in the previous Assembly. This was not a surprise. The Housing Corporation had at least two years to prepare for this. If they can’t figure out how to hook up power, how...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to take a few minutes to recognize and honour those in our neighbourhoods and communities who are victims of sexual abuse and who are suffering silently. I would especially like to honour the stories of those who are victimized as children and let them know we, as a society, demand and accept nothing less than zero tolerance against any kind of violence, especially when it comes to sexual violence or violence of any kind against our young and innocent children.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t believe there is any task more important for people who...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for correcting those errors. I have two sets of written questions. The first one is to the Honourable David Krutko, Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.

How much money was budgeted and has been spent out of the budget approved for the market housing initiative as of October 15, 2004?

Describe the work along with the dollar amounts for which the Business Incentive Policy was waived and for which the BIP was applied in this initiative, respectively.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Krutko.

Further Return To Question 312-15(3): Treatment Of Contractors In Market Housing Initiative

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So could the Minister clarify exactly who, where, what subcontractors was BIP applied to? He indicated earlier that he wanted to make sure that 50 percent of the business stayed in the North, so they were entitled to BIP. But apparently the business that puts mobile homes together in Yellowknife, the Housing Corporation can’t afford. So I want to know exactly who got the benefit of BIP. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Perhaps the Minister was not privy to this, but, in the midst of this debate in March, there were at least two NWT business people who do this for a living, who build up trailers. They could do it with their eyes closed. They were not even allowed to bid because the department insisted on going with the Edmonton firm. Would the Minister now look at the local businesses that can do the job and deliver them on time? Would he do that, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. Speaker, my question is if the Housing Corporation can’t do any of these areas, power hook-up, gravel, lots, I think those are pretty essential items of building a house. If the Housing Corporation can’t do that, how can we have confidence that they can carry on with the other phases of this marketing initiative program?

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