Robert Hawkins

Thank you, and I’m really careful in how I want to say this because I don’t want to sound as if I’m stereotyping people in these situations. So I’m trying to be very careful, but if somebody left their windows open and the heat on, the everyday person would be paying for that. What happens from a Housing Corporation or an LHO point of view to make sure that doesn’t happen. The average everyday person who leaves the lights on has to take ownership when they go to work, the kids go to school, those types of things. If they leave all the lights on, they have to accept that if they want to do that...

The Minister had mentioned workshops. I’m very curious if the Minister -- sorry, in this particular case the Premier -- has the Premier on this particular subject had people identify certain positions, whether they’re in policy or programming, that should take gender-based analysis? To reflect that, as I understand it, the courses or workshops have been cancelled going forward. Is this initiative stalled, or been stopped completely?

Thanks. I appreciate the Minister’s perspective on this particular subject. I’m having a difficult time understanding what the motivating factors are. I hear his point, it didn’t go past me, which is $6 is probably, in some cases, for some people six more dollars than they have. But that said, I mean, I’m just not hearing perhaps what the Housing Corporation does to monitor and manage. I mean, if somebody had an 800 kilowatt bill one month, I mean, what would the department do? By and large would they just pay it and, of course, the person would now pay $48 that month for a power bill, or do...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement today I talked about gender-based analysis and highlighted that there is some training going on there, but I’m still looking to see some policy update, as are a number of my constituents and the public waiting to see that. My question to the Premier would be: when can Members of this House and the public see the updates to the 1998 equity policy in the form of the gender-based analysis?

Thank you. Mr. Anderson cited we’ll call it the average of 500 kilowatts on the household. It’s been my understanding that that’s a normal kilowatt usage throughout the Territory, in the smaller communities that is. What does the department do to encourage people to use power efficiently? Has the Housing Corporation switched all the light bulbs from incandescent to the... Has the Housing Corporation switched the washing machines to high efficiency, have they changed the water things, things of that nature to help bring those costs down? By and large it sounds as if the tenant is responsible...

Mr. Chairman, I am just trying to get a sense of... I thank Mr. Anderson for that answer. He led right into exactly where I wanted to go. What programs do we offer to mitigate? The note I wrote down here to make sure I asked was, how do we manage, control or create efficiencies in the context of consumption, whether it is water, sanitation, heating, fuel and power rates, when by and large a lot of people are not actually paying those actual bills? How do we manage and monitor and create efficiencies in those particular areas? Thank you.

Mr. Chairman, I think the Minister has been more than generous with his offer of information. I will take what he has offered. Thank you.

Mr. Chairman, if an LHO is in deficit, how does that reflect upon their operations? Would it affect their maintenance budget by and large? Does the Housing Corporation make up the shortfall on the maintenance budget? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too will be voting in favour of this particular motion. I believe if you listen very carefully to the membership here, the Members all speak in favour of the motion and you’ll notice, listening carefully, that you’ll hear the strong support for the Mine Training Society in that there is acknowledgement for the work that they have done over the many years.

I truly believe in supporting educational opportunities that support Northerners, allowing them to get on their own feet. It’s almost like a helping hand as opposed to a help out, an education, as I’ve always seen it...

Mr. Speaker, I am glad to hear the Minister say 100 percent he supports those students, so I guess it would be a very clear answer if I asked a question. Does that mean the department is going to work towards funding these students? Thank you.