Agreed.
We are moving along to page 7-30, Public Works and Services, information item, Petroleum Products Revolving Fund. Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just wanted to question here the surplus deficit. After looking at income and expenditures for this fund is a deficit of $232,000 and yet the description at the top indicates that it is supposed to be a breakeven operation. Could I get an explanation as to why this is a deficit and is it a certain point in time only? That is it. Thanks.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Guy.
Mr. Chairman, the reason we are showing a forecasted deficit for 2011-12 is because over time the closing balance of the revolving fund, the surplus deficit has been creeping up. The higher end of the surplus side of the scale was limited to a surplus of $1 million. We try to target half a million dollars, so that is a planned deficit to bring it back in line with our target of half a million. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, you are planning for a deficit of half a million dollars, so this is actually a good thing. I guess, then, maybe we should revise the description at the top of the page. Half a million deficit isn’t breakeven to me. Thank you.
I will just clarify, Mr. Chairman. If you look at the closing balance, it is showing $514,000. That would be our target of half a million. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Mr. Guy. Mr. Krutko.
Again, Mr. Chairman, we find ourselves under the economic threat of what is going on in the world, especially coming to fuel prices as we have just heard in the news since just yesterday that the fuel prices have exceeded $100 a barrel in which they are talking of the possibility of what is happening in Lebanon and other places in the world in regards to the Middle East that affects southern Arabia and other countries. It could be in excess of $200 a barrel. Are we prepared for that? Do we have enough fuel products that we purchased and at what time did we purchase and are we vulnerable to the changing prices in regards to our ability to basically fund that, realizing that we don’t have a surplus? What will the costs... I know we have had an arrangement where we are providing fuel products what you call over the top, that we are able to bring in fuel from around B.C. and through Alaska and over the top in which we are looking at savings there. I would like to know from the department in regards to the Petroleum Products Revolving Fund, how vulnerable are we in light of what has happened here in the last couple of weeks.
Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister McLeod.
Mr. Chairman, the revolving fund is something we can control as to what the inputs and outputs are for this program. We have purchased all of our fuel for the summer resupply. We have purchased the majority of our fuel for winter’s resupply. We look, as the Member raised, to the future. We expect we are going to see rising costs, but that should not affect our revolving fund. Thank you.
Mr. Chairman, do we have any long-term locked in contracts in regards to our suppliers in regards to the commitments we have with the Power Corporation and communities in regards to fuel resupply? Do we have long-term contract commitments or is it simply on a year-to-year basis?
Mr. Chairman, we have contracts signed for three years with our suppliers. Most of our fuel purchases are based on rack price.
Mr. Chairman, again, if it is rack price, we are definitely going to see a difference of what it was last week versus what it is this week. I think that is the vulnerability that we are under. If it is basically based on rack price, we are vulnerable. I think that, for me, having a locked in price and a long-term contract, again, if it is based on the rack price, that is my concern. I would just like to know, just using the scenario of what the prices were last week versus what the prices are this week, do we have any idea what that... I have to pull out the calculator here, but again, my point is that we are vulnerable by locking ourselves into a rack price.
Mr. Chairman, as I indicated, all of our summer purchases are done and have been delivered. Most of our winter supply is in the communities. We are not very concerned at this point with the prices up to now. We have a fairly good reserve in the tanks in Inuvik. That will help us offset some of the future costs. Right now it is difficult to predict what our summer purchases will come in at. I would expect, as the Member has indicated, that it will come in a lot higher. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister McLeod. We are on page 7-31, Public Works and Services, information item, Petroleum Products Revolving Fund, active positions.
Agreed.
Page 7-32, Public Works and Services, information item, work performed on behalf of others.
Agreed.
Page 7-33, Public Works and Services, information item, work performed on behalf of others, continued.
Agreed.
That concludes our consideration of detail. I will get everybody to turn back to page 7-7, Public Works and Services, department summary, operations expenditure summary, $92.988 million. Agreed?
Agreed.
Does committee agree that we have concluded the consideration of Public Works and Services?
Agreed.
Agreed. Thank you, committee. Minister, if I can please get you to thank your witness, and thanks to the witness for being here. Sergeant-at-Arms, could I please get you to escort them out?
Is committee agreed that we proceed with the Department of Executive?
Agreed.
Agreed. We will just give the witnesses an opportunity to exit the Chamber.
Premier Roland, you have some opening remarks that you would like to make from the Department of Executive.
Yes, Mr. Chairman. The 2011-2012 main estimates for the Department of Executive. The goals for the Department of Executive are centred on our role in ensuring effective coordination of government activities, supporting informed decision-making related to policies and programming, and coordinating implementation of strategic initiatives that advance priorities of the 16th Legislative Assembly.
The overall proposed budget for the department is $15.07 million for 2011-2012, which is an increase of $764,000, or 5.3 percent, from the 2010-2011 main estimates. The overall increase since the last main estimates is due to $445,000 for strategic initiatives and $570,000 in forced growth, including $337,000 in collective bargaining increases, offset by sunsets of $251,000.
The 2011-2012 main estimates reflect the key activities where the department plays a critical role in leading or coordinating the development and implementation of strategic actions that advance the Assembly’s priorities.
The Executive operations branch includes the strategic planning unit, Program Review Office, Bureau of Statistics, office of devolution and the regional operations offices for the Department of Executive. In addition to the core business activities, there are a number of priority areas that have been advanced during 2011-2012.
As was noted in the budget address, the Northwest Territories has experienced virtually no population growth over the past five years. As part of the Maximizing Opportunities Strategic Initiative, these main estimates include $145,000 to support implementation of an overall growth strategy. The growth strategy is currently under development and will build on the existing activities like the national marketing campaign that support overall growth in the Northwest Territories.
An investment of $150,000 is also reflected in the main estimates related to the community price surveys that are being undertaken as part of the efforts to monitor impacts of the changes in electrical rates on consumer prices. This investment is supporting collection by the Bureau of Statistics in all communities that is being undertaken in six month intervals over 2010-2011 and 2011-2012.
The regional offices within the Executive operations branch are coordinating implementation of the pilot project for single-window service centres in rural and remote communities. That was advanced as part of the Refocusing Government Strategic Initiative. These offices, located in Ulukhaktok, Aklavik, Fort Good Hope, Colville Lake, Nahanni Butte, Fort Providence, Whati and Lutselk’e, were opened in the fall of 2010 and are staffed by a government service officer, or GSO. We have been fortunate in recruiting Aboriginal people for all of these positions who, in most cases, are able to deliver services and work in their own Aboriginal language. These GSOs are a great asset to our government. They provide assistance to residents of these smaller communities to access Government of the Northwest Territories programs and services. We are getting very positive feedback on the establishment of these offices. GSOs are using proactive approaches to help residents, like elders. One day a week the GSOs are out of their offices and visiting with elders in the communities to listen to concerns and provide practical assistance to help elders access programs and services as required.
These main estimates do not reflect funding required for the next stage of devolution negotiations and implementation planning. As Members know, the AIP was signed last month, well after this budget was developed. The department will need to return to the Legislative Assembly for funding to support negotiations for a final agreement, including GNWT support for participation of regional Aboriginal governments. Members will be aware that the AIP includes funding for the GNWT and Aboriginal governments to complete a number of activities before a final agreement is reached, including developing an organizational design, completing work on waste sites, developing training plans, assessing IT requirements, and developing territorial legislation. The negotiations are separate from these activities, and the GNWT will need to ensure that participating northern governments have adequate resources to complete this next critical stage.
Also included in these main estimates is the Cabinet support branch of the Department of Executive, which is responsible for ensuring systems are in place to support informed decision-making and successful implementation of Cabinet direction. The branch includes the Cabinet secretariat, legislation and house planning, corporate communications and protocol, the women’s advisory office, and supports the Commissioner’s office.
Other key activities for the department that are reflected in these main estimates include the Ministers’ offices, which include the Premier’s office and support to Ministers as well as the Department of Executive’s portion of the federal Engagement Strategy activities. This activity is being coordinated by the Premier’s office and will support additional capacity to engage the federal government on our key priorities.
Also reflected in the main estimates is the office of the secretary to Cabinet, which is responsible for providing overall leadership for the public service, supporting Executive Council decision-making, and coordinating the development and implementation of overall government-wide direction. Finally, the department also provides operational support to the Public Utilities Board, which is the independent regulatory agency responsible for energy regulation within the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my introductory remarks and I am prepared to answer any questions that committee members may have.
Thank you, Mr. Premier. Would you like to bring witnesses into the Chamber?
Yes, Mr. Chairman.
Is committee agreed that we allow the Premier to bring his witnesses into the Chamber?
Agreed.
Agreed. Sergeant-at-Arms, if I could get you to please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.
Thank you. Premier Roland, if I can please get you to introduce your witnesses for the record.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. To my left is Penny Ballantyne, Cabinet secretary, and to my right is Dave Stewart with the Department of Executive.
Thank you, Premier Roland. As with previous departments, we will allow Members general comments on the opening remarks and once all the Members have spoken, we will go to the Premier for his response to those general comments. General comments, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just a couple of comments here I have to follow up since Mr. Bromley is not here, and express, as he would, his dismay that this budget has increased by 5.3 percent instead of the 3 percent cap that we had presumably agreed on. That said, I am really pleased to hear about the single-window service centres and that they are working, that the GSO, government service officers seem to be a successful move and I look forward to hearing further updates as we get a little further into this project.
I am disappointed, however, there is nothing in the Premier’s remarks, I will certainly have questions when we get to that part of the budget, but in terms of volunteers and in terms of NGOs there is nothing in the remarks here. The Premier knows, or the Minister knows it is an area that is of great concern to me and several other Members, so I will have some questions when we get to that part. Other than that, I have nothing else. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. General comments. Mr. Krutko.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. In regards to the Premier’s statement I just can’t help myself wondering which groups the Premier is talking about negotiating with regional Aboriginal governments. Are we only talking about the two that signed the agreement-in-principle?
There was a question asked in the House by Mr. Menicoche about trying to fund Aboriginal organizations that have concerns with the devolution agreement and it was pretty clear from his comments that he will not be funding those organizations. So by asking for money from the House to support negotiations towards a final agreement, who are you going to negotiate the final agreement with, and more importantly, why are we leaving the Aboriginal groups that have not decided to sign and offer them an opportunity to come forward with their issues, negotiate them on a table that we can all sit around and get away from this idea of exclusion by simply not agreeing with the government? That seems to happen in most dictatorships around the world, but it seems like we’re starting one here in the Northwest Territories simply because you do not agree with the position of Cabinet or the government and you are being excluded or chastised for not taking or not participating in government-to-government talks, regardless of whether it’s required or not required. We do have an obligation to consult, we have land claims obligations, we have obligations under the UN Declaration of Indigenous Peoples.
Mr. Speaker, it’s pretty clear, from what I see here, that this government will proceed full speed ahead. Sorry, we’ve signed with two groups, we haven’t signed one agreement with any Dene organization or treaty group in the Northwest Territories who have treaties, regardless if its 1921 or treaties signed in 1998 in regard to Treaty 8. Those are the groups that have treaty rights, land rights. They’re the only group that has a land claim that talks about Northern Accord, it talks about royalty sharing in the Mackenzie Valley. Yet, Mr. Speaker, from what I can read here, it looks like it’s business as normal, nothing’s happened, we’re going full speed ahead and we’ll leave those people on the sidelines.
It is totally pathetic that this government, in this day and age, will continue to operate basically removing from those groups that question government’s position, or question government agreements knowing that they’re not perfect. They do not meet the objective of the land claim agreements and they do not meet the objective of the groups that have made it clear through written concerns, areas of concerns and not allowing for those agreements to even be discussed or considered, which took place over some seven months after a letter was sent to the Premier where the president of the Gwich’in Tribal Council clearly stated at a northern leaders’ meeting back last spring, where the Premier was asked, are you going to respond to my letter. I was there and I heard perfectly clearly, oh, I’ll get back to you right away. That was last spring. It took him seven months to respond to a letter.
Yet we are here approving a budget for a department that wants to go full speed ahead realizing that you have signed an agreement with a minority of Aboriginal groups in the Northwest Territories and yet you call it government-to-government relationships. So I would just like to ask the Premier, from the statement that you made in regard to your opening remarks, which groups are you talking about negotiating with and do they have to sign the agreement, or can they agree to disagree and bring their issues forward and try to find resolution either between the Government of the Northwest Territories and the Government of Canada to find resolution to this issue? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Krutko. General comments. There are no more general comments. I’ll go to Premier Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The overall increase of the Department of Executive incorporates a number of the strategic initiatives that we’ve discussed through the life of this Assembly and also includes the compensation portion, the compensation benefits portion of the budget and that is why it goes over the target amount.
The areas of the NGOs and volunteers, we are doing work in those areas and we will be prepared to speak to them as we go through the detail of the budget.
On the agreement-in-principle, devolution, the comments I made in my opening remarks about funding and having to go forward and get our budget prepared, as this budget right now does not have funding that would be required to work with all of the groups, those that wanted to work with us to do the work, we would have to come forward early in the new year to request of this Assembly dollars to work with the groups that are there and want to move forward on negotiations, and the negotiations will take part in a number of ways. There are areas where bilateral discussions will happen strictly with Aboriginal groups, and that is Section 12 when it talks about resource revenue sharing.
There are other areas where we will deal specifically with the federal government; for example, transfer of employees to the Government of the Northwest Territories from the federal government, and other areas where it’ll be more inclusive of all groups when it comes to, for example, chapter 6, where we talk about jurisdiction and sharing of authorities in that area and implementation of the final agreement. So there are a number of different levels of negotiation that would be required. We’ll have to do a lot of work in the upcoming months to prepare for that, a work plan, schedule and prepare for mandates as we would venture down the road of negotiations with the federal government and with Aboriginal governments. Thank you.
Thank you, Premier Roland. Is committee agreed that we’ve concluded general comments?
Agreed.
Agreed. We’ll move along to detail. Detail for the Department of Executive starts on page 2-7, but we’ll defer 2-7 until after consideration of detail. So let’s turn to page 2-8. Is committee agreed?
Agreed.
Agreed. Alright, Executive, information item, infrastructure investment summary.
Agreed.
Agreed. Next page, Executive, 2-9, information item, revenue summary.
Agreed.
We’re agreed. Next item, page 2-10, Mr. Krutko.
