Debates of August 17, 2007 (day 12)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The cost of living in the Sahtu is one issue that has been bothering my people for a long time. The Government of the Northwest Territories provided MLAs with a presentation in 2006 called the Cost of Living in the Northwest Territories. This presentation showed Sahtu communities are in the top 10 most expensive communities for food prices in the Northwest Territories. For instance, food in the Sahtu is actually double the cost of food in Edmonton. However, in Yellowknife, food is only 10 percent more expensive than in Edmonton. The Sahtu is also in the top 10 again when it comes to non-food items such as household supplies, cleaning goods and personal care items. Gas and fuel prices are very high. For instance, Colville Lake pays $1.22 a litre while in Hay River they only pay 95 cents a litre. Not only is the Sahtu paying more per litre in heating fuel, but we also are in the colder regions in the Northwest Territories. To add to this burden, Mr. Speaker, communities in the Sahtu also have, in general, a lower income and endure the highest cost of living in the Northwest Territories.

Larger communities on the highway system have the highest income and the lowest cost of living. Thousands of dollars are spent that pump into each household in an attempt to mitigate the high cost of living when, as I pointed out in my earlier statements in this Assembly, if you have a highway built in the Sahtu, life would be less expensive.

Maybe this government should save millions of dollars by just building a highway into the Sahtu. The cost of living discussions have taken a lot of time in this Assembly, Mr. Speaker. It is time to stop talking about it and time to start acting. Thank you.

---Applause