Tom Beaulieu

We recognize that the population in the Northwest Territories has dropped, but in the GNWT, from the last time we were able to print the PeopleSoft report, which was October 2013, and the next time we were able to print the PeopleSoft report, April 2014, we had a decrease in the overall vacancy rate.

The Member is right; the overall vacancy rate back then was 1,150. I gave various reasons as to where those positions lagged, but that number has gone down to 1,031 at this point. So we have decreased that number by approximately 120 persons and that vacancy rate number. Now, that 1,030 are spread...

Mr. Chair, I would indicate to the Member that we will look at the regular process if a decision is made to go back to providing a services shop in Tsiigehtchic in the future. We would certainly put it through the regular process.

Thank you. Not all of those jobs are advertised at the same time, but they are in the process at some stage. Some of them could be at the point when the departments are putting together the information needed to go to advertisement. Some will be in advertisement. Some will be in the interview process and some will be at the offer stage and some could be at the appeal stage. So, this is a flow through. So, if 70 jobs are advertised at one point, I would say that’s a sufficient number to correlate with the numbers I’d given the Member earlier. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We would be pleased to do the communications with the community, keeping the community advised on how things are moving forward, getting their input, consulting with them and, of course, also working with the Department of Health and Social Services as we will as a government go together to consult to ensure that what the community wants is what the community gets.

Thank you. The issue with the land and location has been resolved. I don’t know the exact location, but perhaps the deputy minister can add to this in a minute.

As far as the communications, we will work with the department and Health and Social Services to make sure that as the project moves forward, we’re communicating with the leadership in Fort Simpson.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The majority of the budget for the capital cost for the new shop in Fort Simpson is slated for 2015-16. We have spent some money already on that capital project and there will be some money spent in 2016-17, as well, but as I indicated, the majority of it will be in this fiscal year that we’re talking about today. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The deferred maintenance budget of $5 million is in the capital and we also have $3 million in O and M in deferred maintenance, as the Members are aware. The infrastructure deficit is impacted a bit by deferred maintenance. Deferred maintenance essentially is on infrastructure that is already in place; however, it prevents that from becoming infrastructure deficit by us doing midlife work. Also, when there is time for items that have been deferred, that is the program for deferred, then we then do the work on the building. So we have been able to reduce our deferred...

Mr. Chair, I do.

I do not believe that these were direct appointments. Usually we fill direct appointments for a few reasons, one being that it’s a development opportunity for a person that has a priority 1 status in the government. We also offer those types of development opportunities to individuals that have priority 2 status in the Northwest Territories.

When we direct appoint somebody that has a priority 3 status, which I would assume all of these five people have, then it would be a position that we were unable to fill. Perhaps a scenario could be that the job was advertised two or three times without...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t have the costs with me, but we collected approximately 700 resumes and were able to hire five people. Thank you.