Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday in the House the Minister of Finance announced a transfer of public housing back to the NWT Housing Corporation and ultimately back to the local housing organizations. I feel this was an excellent move. However, Mr. Speaker, the Income Support Program being administered by ECE still has its challenges.
In one of the two communities I represent, we do not have a community services officer. This makes it difficult for people to get assistance in a timely manner, but timely response is not the only issue, Mr. Speaker. The program is a computer program that has no creativity, no feeling and it’s being delivered in communities where employment rates are about 40 percent.
Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about how clients were assessed, are assessed and how decisions are made with respect to their situation. At one time, many of these decisions were made by social workers and in many of these communities these social workers were well known, well liked and they knew the people and the community knew them and in many cases they knew the circumstances behind why the individual or the family was coming for assistance. The system seemed to work well.
Then things changed. The Income Support Program went through a number of changes. Today the program starts off with a six-page application form and we have a program that many of our constituents in smaller isolated communities, the community service officer only comes in once a month or so and the program is very computer-based and decisions on people’s lives are beside it on the computer screen. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Shame.
The honourable Member from Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
MEMBER’S STATEMENT ON
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, recently I’ve spoken with constituents of mine who are paying over $1,000 a month per bedroom in their respective communities. Mr. Speaker, that’s unacceptable. I cannot imagine a family of four, how can they afford a housing unit like that or having to provide healthy foods for their family; another contentious issue on how the NWT Housing Corporation and the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment calculate the tenant’s income when determining rent.
Even though the settlement allowance and northern living allowance may seem the same, Mr. Speaker, they are not. They are very different. Northern living allowance is exempt on the Public Housing Rental Subsidy from ECE. According to my constituents, Public Housing Rental Subsidy, some people in the same housing unit are assessed differently. In fact, there have even been assessments made on the same person, Mr. Speaker.
Settlement allowances are provided by community governments and northern allowances provided by territorial and federal governments. Constituents are getting penalized for who they work for, Mr. Speaker. Constituents who work for the hamlets should be equal to those that work for the GNWT.
When you work in small communities, there are many challenges such as little or no room for advancement. This is unfair and is another unnecessary challenge to people who are committed to their jobs, but aren’t even given equal rights as employees.
As I expressed in previous sessions, I have been receiving a lot of comments in the Nunakput communities regarding this issue. Many people in small, isolated communities live in NWT housing units because there’s no other option.
Mr. Speaker, although northern allowances and settlement allowances are non-assessable income, evaluation is a complicated formula. There is an enormous inconsistency in these policies in how the staff in regions are expected to use them.
All tenants under the Public Housing Rental Policy, regardless of employment or circumstances, should be treated with consistency, unless for reasonable circumstances such as our elders.
Northern allowance and settlement allowance is given to people in small, remote communities all over this great Territory.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.
---Unanimous consent granted.
Northern allowance and settlement allowance is given to people in small, remote communities all over this great Territory because of the high cost of living. Even with those allowances, people in my riding are paying 80 percent more for basic necessities than people living in the major centres.
Mr. Speaker, I will have questions for the appropriate Minister in question period. Thank you.
The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
