Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Madam Chair. We wish to continue with TD 188-17(5), Northwest Territories Main Estimates 2015-2016. We want to continue with the Department of Transportation, then the Department of the Executive and Environment and Natural Resources if we get that far.

I have to reiterate that this is an accident waiting to happen. I appreciate the work that has been done that Mr. Neudorf pointed out. It definitely is safer than it used to be, but there is, at this point, no safe place for pedestrians to cross. I think it is something that this government needs to take a stronger position in, I guess. I would encourage the Minister to see if there isn’t some money to be found in the ’15-16 budget that could do whatever work is required to turn this over sooner rather than later. The fact that there’s no timeline is very concerning to me.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Minister: I guess if his department has done some research, he should know by now that we are out of step with the rest of the country, and I think we ought to get back in step.

I asked the Minister a number of weeks ago whether or not there’s a cost to the department to allow somebody to keep their RRSP to allow them to have something to fall back on when they eventually retire or when they get to old age.

I would like to ask the Minister, again, is there, in his mind, any cost to the government for allowing an individual to keep their RRSP?

Thanks to the Minister. My other question in this area has to do with the highway, the roadway from the intersection at the Explorer Hotel and the now extinct gas station and then heading out towards Niven Lake. It’s been discussed for quite some time. By quite some time I mean quite a few years. There’s a great concern for the people that live in Niven Lake and walk to work and downtown that it’s reasonably unsafe. There’s concern over tourists who are walking from downtown to the Visitors Centre. There’s no place for people to cross from one side of the road to the other.

My understanding is...

To the Minister: I guess I would say that if there is a willingness to make changes, this would seem to me to be a change that should be made sooner rather than later. The Minister seems to suggest that he has to wait for changes to be suggested from the public or from us as MLAs. Well, I’m making the suggestion. It seems to me that the policy says that it’s okay to save for certain things but it’s not okay to save for other things.

If the money is not available to be cashed in, I’d like to ask the Minister, will he not wait for more complaints but will he, in the next month, look at revising...

Thanks to the Minister. Three or four bundles… Does a bundle equate to a fiscal year, or is this three or four bundles in the ‘15-16 fiscal year? Thanks.

The NWT income support policy in regards to RRSPs puts people into poverty and ensures that they stay there right through retirement and into old age.

Mr. Speaker, I will have some questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment at the appropriate time. Thank you.

If I heard the Minister correctly, then, the funding for the Mackenzie Valley Highway is totally outside of this budget. I’m wondering about the Building Canada Plan. Is any of the Building Canada Plan money intended for the Mackenzie Valley Highway? Thank you.

That’s good. Thank you.

The Minister said supp review. Now I’m a little confused. I guess I’m wanting to know when the evaluation of the communications review will be done and when the government will know whether or not we’re going to increase our communications personnel which would then require an additional supp. Is this weeks or months or years that we’re talking?