Debates of February 1, 2006 (day 20)

Ohhh.

Mr. Speaker, I must say that, going right back to our strategic plan in the government, we talked about a strong economy and having a good fiscal environment. I hope the Member refers back to some of those documents. In terms of consensus government, that has been talked about for the last I don’t know how many years; certainly the life of this government and the government before.

Mr. Speaker, we are working with industry, and, as I say, with all industry, not just the pipeline, but everybody to create that certainty. We’ve talked about it I don’t know how many different occasions with all the Members. This doesn’t come as any surprise. But we believe in a good fiscal environment. We also have to, as I said earlier, Mr. Speaker, keep these issues separate. We’re not going to use somebody as a pawn to achieve something else. Our negotiations on resource revenue sharing are with the federal government, not with Imperial.

Mr. Speaker, I have to say, I am really heartened by the commitment that the Prime Minister-designate has made toward a devolution of those responsibilities to us and the fact that he has said that we should be the primary beneficiaries of the resource revenues, and he has also said that he believes in resolving that whole fiscal imbalance issue right across the country. But, Mr. Speaker, those are things that we’re working on at the same time here. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 313-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Yes, going to be wearing out lots of running shoes here, Mr. Speaker. Is it now official GNWT policy to give letters of comfort and certainty to all resource related projects that might come up in the future before having to talk with his colleagues on the other side here? Is this going to be the way we will continue now to develop letters of comfort, letters of certainty?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 313-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of the principles in the letter, those are long understood and agreed to. Mr. Speaker, I have to again remind the Member to check back in his notes. He will find that the Minister of Finance met with the committee before the letter went out. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Final supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 313-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Mr. Speaker, one of the terms of comfort that we offered was to say that it’s the intention of the GNWT to maintain a post-devolution royalty regime for the three anchor gas fields. Now, we have always said, government has always said that First Nations' governments have got to be at the table whenever we talk devolution. Did we consult with the First Nations on this position? Did we compromise their interest by agreeing to lock in to royalty rates in a post-devolution environment?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 313-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Mr. Speaker, again I have to remind the Member that the Aboriginal Summit has been in existence for years. There are ongoing discussions with them on resource revenue sharing. There are bilateral discussions between them and us. There are trilateral discussions between them, us and the federal government. They are involved. They know our positions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It appears that we’re strong with…We’re starting with a bang in this first day of five weeks of session to come.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, my question, however, is to the Minister of Health and Social Services. It’s in regards to the respite care program. Mr. Speaker, for many months and the number of years I’ve been here, there has been a call for the need, or speaking about the need, for the respite care program. We’ve finally got one in Yellowknife. It’s being run by Abe Miller and the Association for Community Living. But, as far as I’m aware, it’s a pilot program and the last time I asked questions to the Minister, he indicated that he was reviewing the program with the view of continuing it. So I’m wondering if the Minister would tell this House where he’s at with that review process. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Return To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The issue of respite care is an issue of concern for all communities. We have had a pilot here. It has been evaluated. It can be very successful. We put the funds forward to carry down towards the end of the fiscal year and we are coming forward to continue the program and to look at expanding it outside of Yellowknife. That will be in the detail of the budget coming before this House. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that answer and the efforts that the Minister and the government are making in that regard. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister stated, there is a huge need for this, and I think Members on this side of the floor have been getting lots of calls from those parents or caregivers who are able to get some relief, which is what this program is meant to do, except I think there is an opening for about a dozen placements and there is a waiting list of probably five times longer, if not longer than that. It seems like there is no system in place to move these services along. I would think that once someone has a need, it doesn’t really change. So I would like to know if the Minister has looked into how best to manage the programs, so that we serve as many people as possible but also give more people a chance to access that program. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member identifies some of the challenges that face us in the administration and delivery of this program, and we are working in Yellowknife to identify who will administer this and to identify the pool of available individuals who are willing and able to provide the respite service. So those are legitimate concerns and we are addressing those. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that we will probably have an opportunity to discuss this in detail as the days come along, but I am just wondering if the Minister could indicate to the House as to whether there were any programs under federal funding that he’s aware of, or are we already accessing any federal money on that? The previous government in Ottawa spoke about homecare funding and I guess we need time to sort out all the promises and commitments by various parties, but could he indicate to the House about any federal funding available for this? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For this particular program, we are looking at and intend to access or make use of the territorial health access fund that was agreed to by the former federal government back in September 2004.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe this is a pilot program. It’s running out of Yellowknife, but I have no doubt that this will have to expand to other communities. I am just wondering if the Minister could commit to this House to make this one of his priority issues to deal with his federal counterpart as soon as that person is known to advance this issue? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 314-15(4): Respite Care Program

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I have indicated in this House on previous occasions, this program is an important one and the intention is to move it outside of Yellowknife and provide the service as comprehensively as we can across the Northwest Territories. So, yes, we are eagerly waiting, as the Premier indicated, on the opportunity to find out who the new Ministers will be and we will be gathering and contacting them as soon as we can with a list. That particular item will be on that list. Thank you.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. My question today is to the Minister of Health and Social Services in relation to some suicide prevention and follow-up. I know that Stanton hospital is equipped with a psychiatric ward that deals with a lot of suicide cases in the NWT. I had an incident over the holidays, Mr. Speaker, about a person who tried to take their own life during the holidays and was quickly medevaced to the Stanton hospital, only to be returned to the community into the same volatile…that she just tried to get out of the very next morning; less than 24 hours flown back to the community and put into the same environment that they had just got out of. Can the Minister help me understand if this is the regular practice of the department, or are there any procedures in place that will require the person to stay either in the psychiatric ward or the hospital for at least a couple of days so they can look back and get some counselling and look at what the next steps can be? Can the Minister help me understand what the practice and the guidelines are for that today? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Return To Question 315-15(4): Suicide Prevention

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the practice is for the health professionals to be engaged as quickly as possible and to make their assessment on a case-by-case basis, then make their diagnosis and recommend a plan of action. I am not in a position to speak specifically to the issue or the case referenced by my colleague, but I could commit, if he wants to discuss it further, to more specifically to check on the particulars of that case. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Mr. Villeneuve.

Supplementary To Question 315-15(4): Suicide Prevention

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would surely be willing to sit down with the Minister just to go through the details. I know when this event was unravelling, we are talking 10:00 p.m. at night to 8:00 a.m. in the morning. I don’t know how the Department of Health and Social Services engages with the clients on a one-on-one basis or does a diagnosis in that time, especially if it’s in the middle of the night and there is only a limited number of staff on board. I was wondering if there is a 24-hour process that allows these professionals to make a good diagnosis and actually help these people recover? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 315-15(4): Suicide Prevention

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is no specific time frame that I am aware of. The cases of the individuals/patients are assessed and determinations are made by the professionals dealing with that particular circumstance. So once again, I would have to find out more as to what transpired so that I could provide that information to the Member, so he could get a better understanding of all the circumstances that were at play and how it all came about and the sequence of events. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Mr. Villeneuve.

Supplementary To Question 315-15(4): Suicide Prevention

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just as a point of interest for the Minister, this isn’t the first time that it’s happened in my constituency. There have been other cases where there has been a quick turnaround and people are sent right back into the unstable environments that they try to get out of. None of them have received any follow-up, any counselling or any phone call from any doctor or psychiatrist that has done their diagnosis here in the city. So I just want to make a point that in smaller communities, they are getting lost in the bureaucratic system with suicide prevention and counselling. I just want to mention to the Minister that he should overlook and take a good review of the whole system and how it works in the small, remote centres. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister of ITI, the Honourable Brendan Bell, with regard to the ongoing discussions with the Sahtu Secretariat. We settled our land claim in 1993 and there is a chapter in our agreement on economic measure with regard to government services and programs and contracts. There are provisions in there to look at exploring that chapter more diligently. I want to ask him for an update on that specific chapter and the Sahtu Secretariat. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bell.

Return To Question 316-15(4): Sahtu Memorandum Of Understanding

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think Members know by policy decision of this government, we engaged with the Gwich’in to sit down and talk about an MOU that would see the GTC represent companies in the Gwich’in settlement region and there would be targets for procurement in that region. At the same time, we made the commitment some years ago in the past government to do likewise in the Sahtu region. We have now sat down to start these discussions with SSI, who will be the umbrella group representing the MOU. We have provided them with a contribution to sit down and do some policy development work and also identify beneficiary companies. So we are into this now and have started those discussions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 316-15(4): Sahtu Memorandum Of Understanding

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, would the discussions and the MOU would be honoured as long as the agreement is still in force with the federal government and the territorial government in terms of MOUs, as long as this agreement should last within our lifetime? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Bell.

Further Return To Question 316-15(4): Sahtu Memorandum Of Understanding

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as a government we’ve made the policy decision to pursue an agreement in the Sahtu region. I have spoken in this House about our commitment to conclude an agreement. You have the Premier’s word that we would pursue an agreement. We are doing so and we will stick to that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in follow-up to Mr. Braden’s questions today, I would like to ask the Premier some questions about this letter of comfort that he provided just so that there is clarity about it, because I don’t think the public knows too much about it. As the Premier indicated, it was brought to our attention prior to it going out. My reaction to it at the time was Imperial Oil and the producers were asking about certainty and comfort on taxation, royalties about the future and going ahead with their project. I would like to ask the Premier, do we set the royalties that are going to be paid by gas producers in the Mackenzie Valley? Do we have control over the Crown lands over which the pipeline is going to run to assess taxes to the proponents? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 317-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No, we don’t set the royalties and, no, we don’t have authority over the Crown lands. But what the company wanted before they invested $7 or $8 billion was to know what was going to happen post devolution. Were we going to be ambushing them with some weird and expensive royalty regime? They wanted some certainty. What were we going to do post devolution? That is the context in which we answered the question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Supplementary To Question 317-15(4): GNWT’s ‘Letter Of Comfort’ To Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Producers

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s nice to know that the industry has such confidence that we are going to actually get devolution in our lifetime.

---Applause

I want to ask the Premier also, the letter that he wrote and signed, I would like to know if it’s binding on future governments. Is it binding on aboriginal governments? Is it binding on the federal government? Thank you.