Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am responding. Clearly, the Member doesn’t like the response, but I am responding in considerable detail. I’ve given her 60 million reasons why we are responding in the way we are and the work we’re doing with communities across the land from the 60th parallel up to the Beaufort-Delta.
I thank the Minister for his 60 million reasons. I only want 55 million. I’ll take the other five million, thank you very much, and put it into an NWT green fund.
The Minister has, I assume, but since I asked why he isn’t enabling, he must consider that he is enabling, and I don’t feel if he thinks that enabling that it is a fair process. He talked about the gas tax money and that communities have gas tax money, but in my estimation the gas tax money is used for the communities’ capital projects in general. It’s not specific to energy projects, and energy projects can be very costly.
A green fund would certainly assist in specific municipal initiatives that would benefit the environment. So why is it that the Minister cannot see to give me my five million reasons so I can put it into an NWT green fund to assist communities? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, we are all talking about I think the same thing. We have $60 million. The majority of that money is going to be directed to projects and work in the communities. The government is doing some work on its own, but by far and away the vast amount of that money, that $60 million over four years, is targeted towards communities. Now, if the Member wants it to be structured differently, if the Member wants that $60 million pot to be called a green fund, I mean, we can talk about the process and the structure, but we have a huge initiative underway, and this is into year two, to do the very things the Member is talking about with communities. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I am not talking about the whole pot of money. I am talking about a piece of that pot of money. I only said I want five million reasons. I don’t want the whole 60. My problem is that the process as outlined by the Minister -- and I don’t even think there is a process -- is not fair. It does not allow the opportunity for all communities to apply for a diverse number of things. They can’t apply for small things like a feasibility study for a project. They can’t apply to do things like field tests because that is going to get overridden by something like a wind energy project. I would like to know from the Minister if he can tell me what process there is right now for the community of, say, Deline, to apply for specific energy funds to initiate a project and does he consider it fair? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, as a government we are funnelling enormous amounts of money to the communities. We have increased that funding year after year, infrastructure money, gas tax money, community capacity money. We now have the majority of the $60 million. We have, in fact, had discussions with Deline. We had discussions with Tulita. We have had discussions with Fort Good Hope over their concern about hydracon, running the river with hydro. We have had discussions with almost every community. Communities are doing the community energy plans. We are helping fund that. We are involved across the board. I’m not sure what the Member wants other than to give her $5 million so she can put it on the table over and above all the work we are doing. I am saying we have that fund. We have a broad strategy. We are already working with communities. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Your final supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I asked the Minister what the plan was that exists. I don’t think I have heard an answer to that. But I appreciate the offer, which I think I heard in that answer and the previous one, of looking at the process. I really think that is something we absolutely have to do. It is not fair right now. There is not an opportunity to assist communities in achieving their end goals; not the government’s goals, the communities’ goals. As this government revises the Greenhouse Gas Strategy, would this idea of an NWT green fund be able to be considered under the revision of that strategy? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, on the issue of fairness, the Member keeps throwing it about that somehow it is not fair. We have put $60 million in as a Legislature, the first Legislature of the 16th Legislature to make that kind of an investment in the communities. We’ve put in unheralded and unprecedented amounts of money into communities to help improve community governments to give them access. We have changed the rules so they can have more ownership. Are we being fair? I think we are. Is the system perfect? We think it can always improve. In this Legislature, as we are going to do with the heritage fund, if there is an intent, a support and a demand that we set up some type of green fund over and above the work we are already doing, then this Legislature, of course, is entitled to bring that issue forward and we will engage in that debate. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Some time ago I talked with the Minister of Health and Social Services about changing the Medical Travel Policy to reflect modern times in such a way that people can seek reimbursement if they need to use a car instead of taking a taxi service. In many cases, we find it is actually cheaper renting a car than it is to use taxi services. No, no, no seems to keep being the response. One of the issues is servicing. Of course, on defence of the Department of Health and Social Services, they say liability. Mr. Speaker, I don’t think liability at all plays a role here because the department does not put the car rental in the territorial government’s name. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Health and Social Services. It is quite simply this: what makes the liability higher in the case of renting a car than submitting a receipt for taxi services? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If my memory serves me correctly, I believe I made a commitment in the House to review this issue and get back to the Member. Right now I can’t remember exactly where it is, but I will undertake to get back to the Member on that review. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister did commit but it has been four months or more. The fact is I don’t really remember the commitment actually meaning anything. Mr. Speaker, the commitment today could be as such that the policy in the Department of Health and Social Services will make that policy change reflective of modern times. The Minister can send that message quite clearly by saying the department will work this out before summer’s end. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I could remind the Member that I did make that commitment to review this and get back to the Member. There are lots of issues associated with this. I will once again make a commitment to get back to the Member on our analysis and review. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, if I may paint the issue as simply as this: the territorial government does not take liability on for taxi receipts, so why would a car expense receipt being an expense be any different? Hotel costs we don’t assume liability for, following the same principle, as well as meal costs we don’t assume liability when we seek reimbursement. Would the Minister, noting these types of perspectives, ensure that she honours the commitment to follow up on this issue to me before the end of March? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, on the other hand, I don’t believe there is any government employee who would be driving a vehicle without proper coverage. I don’t think it is sensible to paint with a general brush expenses associated having a meal versus operating a vehicle. As I mentioned already, this is complex. The department is reviewing that. We will get back to the Member. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think the Minister overstates how complex the issue is, because it is quite simple. Through the reimbursement process of a meal, a hotel and even taxi services, we process their claims. Again, their claim is drawn down through the normal process of medical travel. I am not referring to government employees; I am referring to the average typical normal citizen that goes on medical travel to the South. Mr. Speaker, would the Minister be clear for the record today that she will have her staff certainly by her obviously return a full answer before the end of March on this issue? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, yes, I would endeavour to do that. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Stanton Territorial Hospital serves about 65 percent of aboriginal patients. I want to ask the Minister in terms of healthy, good aboriginal foods for the Stanton Hospital for the patients. Has the Minister moved anywhere in regards to having available traditional aboriginal foods for people who come in from the outside and surrounding communities to see if they will have a choice to have traditional foods served to them while they are in recovery?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member knows, the Stanton Territorial Health Authority has an elders council that has been reviewing issues as the Member mentioned and in particular they have been reviewing that option. I have not received a report back from the council, so I will let the Member know as soon as I get it. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I also know that the Minister and I were at one time very involved in this type of discussion here. Now, I want to ask the Minister, fair enough in terms of the review from the elders council, if she could seek as soon as possible this review with the elders council specifically to this issue regarding serving aboriginal food at Stanton Territorial Hospital. We have patients coming in from the Sahtu and other surrounding communities. When they’re there today if they have the option of implementing this aboriginal food meals to our people in the hospital.
As the Member knows, the meal services are provided by a third-party contractor at Stanton and I’m not aware of cultural and country food being made available to patients at Stanton, which is why the elders council wanted to review this option. It is under consideration by the council and I will be looking for their recommendations.
The foods are part of a third-party contract, as the Minister stated. How can we get the third-party contractor involved in this type of recommendation, sure to come from the elders council through their recommendations, to serve aboriginal foods? I think this is long overdue. Can the Minister provide some insight on how to go about putting the aboriginal foods on the menu at Stanton Hospital for my people?
Obviously the what, the how, the why, and how to implement such a policy is one that the committee is reviewing, among other things, to give advice to the management of the hospital. That is part of the work that the council is doing. I am aware they have been working on that. I will get back to the Member as soon as they are able to provide that.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Could I maybe ask the Minister to show her leadership by meeting with the elders council as soon as possible to see if we can get a recommendation as soon as possible, hopefully by the end of this fiscal year so we can start the new year by implementing a process where the aboriginal people can be assured that their foods will be served at the hospital and they don’t have to come to us every day and say what kind of food are they serving us? They want their aboriginal food. I’d ask the Minister if she could look to her department to make a concerted effort to get this recommendation on the floor from the council to implement it as soon as possible. I ask the Minister, can she feed my people?
The elders council was set up to provide direction and guidance in this area but, as the Member knows, the council is looking at a number of programs and services or approaches that would be sensitive to our aboriginal peoples and their cultures. They’re looking at not only the food component but also the spiritual healing and health and language use, traditional medicines, traditional foods, cross-cultural awareness. They’re looking at a number of things that they would like to work on. Once again, I will undertake to catch up with them to see where they are on making the recommendations.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Premier whether or not we are planning a response to the Joint Review Panel recommendations as the Government of the Northwest Territories and when is the next time we will be submitting any response to the JRP report to any regulatory body?
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Ministers responsible for this area are working to secure time with the committee to go over the process that we’re involved with and the steps that we’ll be required to take. We’ll get that meeting together and we can talk about the process forward.
I appreciate that. I wonder if the Premier would commit to letting us know as soon as he knows the date that we will next be submitting a response, as I mentioned, to any regulatory body.
As I’ve stated, with that briefing to committee, the information that we’ll be able to share on timelines, if that is one of the things we need to nail down is that process and information available to share at that time, I’m sure the Ministers will be prepared to do that.
I believe we did respond on the 11th of February. There was a regulatory need for that. I assume there are other regulatory dates that are scheduled and that we would have to respond by. Perhaps there isn’t, but I would appreciate a commitment again from the Premier that he will find that out and let the House know. Obviously that’s not confidential.
We’ll be able to put a package together on the timelines and commitments that are required of everybody that stepped into this process and will be able to do that with committee.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to the get-together where we can discuss this and how the Regular Members will have input. I guess I would like to ask the Premier to assure us that the perspectives of the Regular Members are being considered in his deliberations before they come to us with a done deal or briefing.
One of the main reasons to get together with members of committees with ourselves is to clearly establish the process forward with information that can be shared. Those type of commitments, input into how we go forward in developing our responses and those areas where we’re, as well, not just solely responsible for area but where other governments are involved. We’ll have to establish that. I understand that we’ll have both a law clerk as well as a justice to help us navigate those waters.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The time for question period has expired. Item 8, written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Item 10, replies to opening address. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to return to item 8 on the Order Paper.
I’m sorry, Ms. Bisaro. I missed what item you wanted to go back to. Was that item 8?
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Item 8, written questions.
---Unanimous consent granted.
Item 8, written questions. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
