Indeed we know that any changes to our electrical structure rates and regulations will have an impact on the people we represent. We must have that discussion in this forum so that we know they are all aware of what the plan is and how we plan to move forward. There is a commitment that we will have that debate here. The Minister responsible will be providing further information on timelines. As I stated, if everything goes as we’ve anticipated, and the discussions and final plans are put in place, we could see changes going forward as soon as the next winter cycle.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today my questions are for the Premier. Considering that in Nunakput we have the highest cost of food in the NWT, will this government get more aggressive, comprehensive when calculating GNWT salaries and northern allowances for smaller northern communities?
Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member has highlighted that we, as the GNWT, through our Collective Agreement have a northern allowance that deals with the cost differences in our communities. That is a process that we use as we get into negotiation cycles. It’s difficult for me to put much detail on that, as it falls into our negotiation process. The Minister responsible would probably be able to give more detail on that. It is something that comes up during the cycles of negotiations with our employees.
Considering that two GNWT jobs, one in Yellowknife and one in the small, remote community, are doing the exact same things, requiring the same level of education, with an income difference of only a few thousand dollars, will this government finally implement realistic initiatives and policies that truly calculate salaries and earnings and other benefits for small, remote communities?
It’s always been a challenge for the Government of the Northwest Territories to have a competitive environment when it comes to our employees in our more remote communities as well as in our larger centres when the economy is heated. For us, as we go forward, it is something that is taken into consideration when the negotiation cycles come into place and that is something that we have discussions on with unions as well as we go forward. I’ll commit to getting the information from the Minister to the Member on how the northern allowance process works and the ranges that are in place for our communities.
In Nunakput right now the economy is not heated. I wish some of the diamond mines would start hiring from our region. Will this government progressively work with the Members of the Legislative Assembly and the Government of Canada to adopt changes to the Food Mail Program that will actually assist residents in the small, remote communities to eat healthy and live healthy?
We are involved in that review to a certain extent. It is a federal program but we have our commitment to stay involved and track it. We have offered suggestions and worked with the leaders that see this program and are involved and have requested changes. We’re staying committed to following it through to see what changes the federal government may bring forward.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Jacobson.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Given that the cost of living in the most northern communities makes healthy living a luxury for only the privileged that have government jobs, and given that currently the residents of Nunakput could pay up to $10 for small bags of salad and you can’t get anything else for $10 in Tuk, given the current approach, it seems just the revised status quo. Will this government place current review program on the food mail for the elders and assistance programs and priorities to get them involved?
Again, the Food Mail Program is a federal program that we’ve become involved in in the sense of trying to come up with a coordinated approach from our side to the federal government. They have their hand on this. We’ll continue to pursue that from our side for any changes and so on. Again, we would have to work with those that have presented their case as well, to see what or how we can influence the federal government in making the necessary changes.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I talked about infrastructure needs for daycares in Lutselk’e and Fort Resolution. I’d like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment questions on that. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister commit to reviewing the education plan of Lutselk’e and communicating with the local district authority on the plan? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are educational plans underway in several of the regions. That information can be shared with the Member and also education boards as well. So we can continue to talk in that area on where we can improve the program delivery, whether it be the child care subsidy or the operation costs or the school system itself. So, yes, Mr. Speaker, we can continue with discussions going forward. Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, although I’m not aware of a written education plan by the DEA in Fort Resolution, would the Minister commit to communicating with the Fort Resolution District Education Authority to discuss a full spectrum of their educational needs including daycares? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, when I said there was a review, maybe some regions haven’t conducted their reviews yet on school operations and the overall school review. So if Tu Nedhe want their review, whether it be one community or two communities, that can be requested by the divisional education council, and working with the MLA and with my department we can initiate that discussion. We do have somebody that is specialized in that area that does go into the community to review those. Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, part of the infrastructure of daycares includes adequate landscaping and outdoor play equipment. Will the Minister commit to ensure that daycares in Lutselk'e and Fort Resolution go into the capital plan complete with proper playground equipment and proper landscaping? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, when it comes to infrastructure, we do not provide the funds for infrastructure in the communities when it comes to a daycare establishment or a facility. However, we do provide funding to offset the cost of rent or mortgage expenses and also the start-up of a facility or operation costs. Mr. Speaker, just for the Member’s awareness, that we are looking at moving early childhood into schools since enrolment is down in the Northwest Territories. So that is an option that we are throwing around so we can deal with the enrolment issues in the Northwest Territories. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Your final supplementary, Mr. Beaulieu.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister commit to looking at other options to increase funding and directing his staff to begin dialogue with the communities of Lutselk'e and Fort Resolution on the examination of the education plans through his department?
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, we will take that into consideration. In 2007, we did have an increase of 30 percent into our programming dollars. So we do continue to improve and enhance our programming. We also have improved early childhood programming, family literacy, outdoor play space, nutrition and staff training. Those are just some of the programs that are available to the communities. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Transportation. Mr. Speaker, there already is rumour and speculation out in the public about the status of the Deh Cho Bridge Project. Tuesday night MLAs received an update on the project. This is Thursday. The update that we received was substantial news, shall we say. This is Thursday and I believe the public needs to be aware of what is happening with this project, because, as I said in my Member’s statement, it could have very far-reaching effects for the operations of this government.
Mr. Speaker, this is a public government and I would like to ask questions about next steps and what the plan of the government is. I would like to ask the Minister, when will he issue a press release. Thank you.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Michael McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member is right, we did a confidential briefing to the Members of this House as to an update and developments in recent days of the Deh Cho Bridge and we plan to have a public release tomorrow sometime. Thank you.
I’d like to try to honour the commitments that we make as committee members when we receive briefings from Ministers not to divulge the contents or detail of those briefings when it is provided on a confidential basis, which this was. However, tomorrow is the last day of sitting in this week and I have made it clear that I would like to… I don’t see any reason not to make this public unless the Minister can explain some reason to us why he can’t do that. But I would like to speak to this tomorrow in the House. It’s Friday and it’s an early sitting day, and I would like the Minister’s press release to precede the discussion here in the House. Will the Minister agree to that? Thank you.
I recognize the Member is biting at the bit to talk about the bridge. It’s always been at the forefront of our discussions here in this House. Mr. Speaker, there are a number of reasons we are still requiring some time before we have a discussion in this House. First of all, we are still talking with the contractors and negotiating, in fact, for a new contract, the new contractors that have come on stream. Of course, we are also looking at making changes and having discussions with the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation. We are also engaging with the lenders and all of these are very sensitive discussions and could have a bearing on some of the results at the end of the day. We haven’t concluded those discussions so that’s the reason we’re not issuing a press release at this time.
Mr. Speaker, I don’t believe that those discussions will be concluded before the time tomorrow, at some time tomorrow when the Minister has already committed to issue a press release. Even if the Minister can’t provide the specific details, I think there are some substantive pieces of information that could be made known to the public. I would like to ask the Minister again, would he release that, in as much detail as he is able to release it, before the House sits tomorrow morning at 10 o’clock? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I’ll release the information that’s available and that I can provide publicly. I have to reaffirm that we’re in negotiations and discussions are very sensitive with the Bridge Corporation, with the lenders, with the contractor. In fact, with the information we provided in the supp, it all, at this point, should be kept confidential, but the Member is wanting a statement in public and I committed to do that and I’ll do that tomorrow. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Your final supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, because this information will necessarily result in having to strike a plan for where we go from here and next steps, and there will be other subsequent decisions that will have to be made, I would like to ask the Minister if he can assure us here today that no substantive agreements will be entered into on behalf of the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation or this government that would not be reversible prior to this being able to be discussed in public. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I’m not too sure what the Member is referring to, but we don’t plan to have any signed deals overnight. We would like to have a better plan that we can present to the Members tomorrow or sometime next week, but that is something we’re still working on and we don’t plan to have any signed documents overnight. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I spoke about the MRSA press release that happened in the Tlicho region yesterday, the superbug or the anti-bacteria. Anyways, Mr. Speaker, I noted that I do have a communication and management plan for the Tlicho region and they’re quite active in pursuing it there. I’d just like to know what is the strategy in the other regions and are there cases in other regions, most specifically, of course, the Nahendeh riding. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the public health officer made it clear in her press conference yesterday, along with the CEO of the Tlicho Community Services Agency, we are aware of a cluster of MRSA cases in some regions in the Territories. It’s important for people to know we are on top of that, that they should not be panicked about it. Mr. Speaker, the system, as a whole, has been working and putting enormous efforts over the last number of months to make sure that our process for infection control in our facilities are strong and clear. The public health officer has been communicating regularly with all of the health agencies and front-line to make sure everybody knows what they need to do to control that.
Secondly, we know that there is a prevalence of cases in the Tlicho and there is a very aggressive plan for the staff there to go on door-to-door visits to make sure that people are aware on the ground to prevent this from spreading.
Thirdly, the public health officer also announced an NWT-wide publicity campaign to make sure everybody is aware of this and taking proper precautions. Thank you.
I would like to know what other efforts in terms of monitoring any more increased cases in other regions and communities are being done. Is there a strategy for that? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Yes, every health authority, every health centre, every authority has proper guidelines about how to monitor, prevent and follow up any infection possibilities. They do regular testing and take samples and make sure they are sent and tested. All of the trends are monitored by health care staff in every community and region and it is guided by a public health officer, Dr. Kandola’s office. So Members and the public should be assured that there is very stringent and aggressive monitoring going on and that all proper steps are taken. We understand now that there are some clusters in communities and we are engaged in a publicity campaign to let every individual know about what steps they can take to make sure that they don’t contract this and if they do, it can be treated easily by early detection. We do everything we can to prevent any further spread.
Just in terms of the strategy in the other regions, does that mean the Health and Social Services department has contacted the leadership, the band councils, the village councils, the Metis councils? I think part of the press conference they are talking about is it’s a community approach that’s got to be taken in this, especially if there are increased numbers in some of those communities. Does the strategy include advising the local leadership, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.
The communication is to the front-line staff and the regional health authorities. They will be going out to the communities to do a publicity campaign. I will make sure that they make contact with leadership to ask for their assistance, very much like we did with H1N1.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me comfort that we have strategies in the other regions and communities. In terms of monitoring, is that something they are doing with the health centres and the community health nurse? They are aware of the symptoms to watch for in local community members? Thank you.
Yes, every health centre and staff at the health centre and hospitals are aware of what symptoms to watch for and what precautions to take to make sure that this does not get contracted or spread once contacted. So, yes, there is a very close monitoring going on of all infection cases in all health centres. Dr. Kandola’s office keeps very close touch in that they know exactly what numbers and what the trends are and fighting aggressively on this situation. Thank you.
