Tom Beaulieu

Mr. Chair, yes we will.

It is not a surprise. The Member is correct; however, each year on a four-year contract we do add in the Collective Agreement and it’s the increases. If the Member is asking whether we could have reduced programs or reduced in other areas in order to make up for the collective bargaining increases, I think that was something that we wouldn’t consider at this time. We think that departments are right-sized as far as personnel go and that these are the increases to the approved positons in this business plan.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The report that we do on a semi-annual basis indicates the vacancy rate and then breaks down which positions are true vacancies where we are attempting to fill the positions. We have 466 positions where we are actually in the process of recruiting. They are at advertisement or they are at the stage where we are preparing to advertise or they could be in the job offering stage after all of the interview processes have taken place. The vacancy rate, which includes positions that are inactive, positions that are filled by casuals and other positions, positions that have...

Mr. Chair, each department has a health and occupational safety coordinator, but it’s not that individual’s position. It would be a position where a person in the government is responsible for that position. Each department has one. Some of the departments that have maybe more… Some of the positions where we’ve had more incidents for, health and safety would have an actual health and safety occupational coordinator position, but I could maybe add to that by just asking the director to indicate which departments would have their own.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We would go to the departments. It’s department-specific information, so we would go to the departments. Each department would have to provide that information.

On this specific item that we’re discussing, there is an increase of $99,000. With some adjustments, all of that increase, essentially, is from the Collective Agreement; $107,000, actually, was the increase in this area, so the increase itself is more than the increase we’re presenting here today.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will look for the officials to support me in this in a general response. Generally what we could respond to is, any vacancies that are in Human Resources, the Department of Human Resources, and then for the overall vacancies in the government, the various agencies, whether they be health authorities or the education authorities, we would need to have the vacancies responded to by the appropriate Minister. As far as the Department of HR goes, we have seven vacancies that we are currently in the process of staffing. Only two of those are in the region and five are in...

The time frame is between six weeks and eight weeks.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to update Members on some recent activities of the Department of Public Works and Services with regards to fuel prices in communities served by its petroleum products division.

Recent changes in the market have seen oil prices go from all-time highs to record lows over the past year. This current market pricing has provided the petroleum products division with an opportunity to lower its costs and pass on these savings to residents.

The lower wholesale prices for fuel have made it possible to pass savings on to residents now, during the peak of the winter heating season...

I don’t have the expertise to indicate here in the House whether or not that would be a solution, but I would definitely go back to the department and discuss a solution with the deputy minister. If there are areas in addition to that one specific area referred to as Georgetown where flooding occurs at all times and the solution is something just south of our border there in the Yukon, we’ll have discussions with them and maybe be able to resolve that problem this winter. Thank you.

Yes, Mr. Speaker, it will be. We will be moving gasoline into communities on the winter road. Thank you.