Wally Schumann

Hay River South

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. No, that is all run through our department. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. To inform the Member, in this budget year, particularly around the Norman Wells Health Centre, there is $196,000 that is going to be put in there for O and M and upgrades and stuff going on there with the assets. There are two people who are going to be hired in the Sahtu region primarily to support the region. There is going to be an operating engineer and a plumber being hired on staff to dedicate some forces towards the Norman Wells Health Centre. Ongoing training is also another aspect that will continue as we further evolve with our staff on that building. Thank you...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

I think we have clearly laid out that we know, to encourage development in the Northwest Territories, that we have to work with all our partners and all our residents across the Northwest Territories in collaboration. I think, with just a quick thought in my head when we are talking about this, it goes back to the announcement we just made with the federal government around the Taltson project. It is quite clear that this government is focused on bringing Indigenous governments into the fold on how we want these projects to move forward. This gives you a very good example of how it laid out...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. One of the things that we've done throughout this year is that we've asked for a film officer, one new position. That's in there. It's clearly laid out, that we wanted additional funding to help support the implementation of the Northwest Territories Film Strategy in its actions to increase marketing efforts to promote the Northwest Territories Film Rebate program and new targeted initiatives that will include annual familiarization tours to attract interest and investment into the Northwest Territories. This position, as I've said, is to help attract investment and...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As I have said, you know, I am very interested in what Mr. Philipp is doing. Oh, sorry. Thank you, Mr. Chair. We are interested in looking with a number of proponents who brings these ideas forward with us. As I said, our strategy is a three-year rolling plan. Things are going to change. These types of ideas are out there. There are a number of people who have approached us on a number of ideas on what we can do in the communities, be it biomass or gasification. There have even been conversations about mini-nuclear and all these sorts of things. We have to be open-minded...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

I will give you a few examples of what we are doing already. As many people in this House know, we have our regional mineral development strategies that we are working with the regions on this, developing them, for those who want to participate in that manner. We are doing two, I think, in this budget cycle again. Our government is already bringing Indigenous governments into the fold as we reach out to the investors of the Global Resource Conference. That is another good example, but we also have funding available from our government to support capacity-building in these areas. We believe...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As I have said under heavy questioning before, around some of the funding allocations that we try to get for the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment, we have to do our applications just like all of the other departments and compete with the limited amount of resources that the Government of the Northwest Territories has. That being said, with the amount of money that we have right now for Support for Entrepreneurs and Economic Development in the Northwest Territories and the applicants that we have got, I think that we are doing a pretty good job with the...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

I will start it, Mr. Chair, and then maybe Vince will want to add something. The GNWT owns the tank farm assets. If we were to have that inside the revolving fund for fuel services, the price of fuel would be unaffordable. It wouldn't be attainable, because that would be right down through MTS. This way, it is in the government assets, and it is written down as a government asset versus through the fuel services. I think I have got that right, but I will defer it to Mr. McCormick here to answer it a little bit better. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The plan going forward once we do this review is, one of the things that I am trying to do right now, we have been trying to set a date up so I can sit down with BDIC's board and their chair to have a discussion around this. Then, once that is done, I am going to go to Cabinet with this document and then probably to standing committee.

Time frame-wise, I can't give you an exact date because we have been having a heck of a time here to try to get organized with the board, because they are from all over the Northwest Territories, to set up a time that we can meet. I am...

Debates of , 18th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 60)

As I said, I will get our superintendent to go in there to have a discussion with the tri-council group in the community. I know that there has been a lot of conversation with that group, particularly around the old landing site for the ferry landing, about turning that into a park, which would be a long-term project that we are trying to work on and have discussions with them. I know that there needs to be some restoration work, if I remember from my briefing with DFO on that, but I will be sure that our superintendent, when we goes there and meets with the tri-council again, initiates the...