Yes, Madam Chair. If committee is interested on energy money and wants to meet somewhere over the course of July or August, we’re more than interested to do that. In regard to the detail of how the reallocated money is going to be spent in early childhood development with Education, I’d ask, Madam Chair, with your indulgence once again, if Minister Lafferty could respond to that about some of the concerns raised by Mr. Bromley. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Minister Lafferty.
Mahsi, Madam Chair. We are fully aware of the Auditor General’s recommendations that were brought to our attention. We are fully implementing the recommendation with all the action plans that will be before us. We are serious about the inspections and we are doing what we can to follow through with each and every one of them. We were given some instruction on focusing more on early childhood development, so that’s what we’re doing with our internal resources. We will be focusing on that as one of our priorities.
Thank you, colleagues. Can I have the report from the Committee of the Whole, please, Mrs. Groenewegen?
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee has been considering Tabled Document 27-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013, and would like to report progress. I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. A motion is on the floor. Do we have a seconder? The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.
---Carried
Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I request unanimous consent to go back to item 20.
---Unanimous consent granted
Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Tabled Document 2-17(3), Commissioner’s Opening Address: Creating the Conditions for Success; Tabled Document 17-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 7, 2010-2011; Tabled Document 18-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 2010-2011; Bill 1, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act; Bill 3, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act; Committee Report 1-17(3), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the 2010-2011 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories; Committee Report 2-17(3), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the 2010-2011 Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission Annual Report, with Mr. Dolynny in the chair.
Committee, I’ll call you back to order here. Mr. Miltenberger, do you have witnesses you would like to bring into the Chamber?
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’ll proceed. We’re trying to see if they’re still in the building. If not, I will proceed without them.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Duly noted. Sergeant-at-Arms, if they do come in, we’ll get you to escort them in and we’ll introduce them at that time. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just continuing on from where we left off there, my point stands. As the Minister of ECE said, these new dollars are proposed for expenditure on items we were clearly assured during business plans would be addressed through existing dollars. How could we not do our inspections on day care centres? The Minister agreed and said that would be funded. The other one was the early childhood framework. We were well along on that. That was a work in progress. Obviously, there were dollars for that. Now, these new dollars we identified for new additive work in early childhood are being re-profiled to existing programs. Obviously, nothing would hurt me more than to delete these hard fought for dollars, but that’s the issue we’re on about here, and why I think we need the Minister’s assurance that we will be having some discussion on these things for meaningful committee input. I think the phenomenon, I guess I would call it fancy footwork and we don’t want it to continue. It undermines our trust and our ability to work together effectively. That’s the assurance I’m looking for from the Minister.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Before I allow this to proceed, your question is not involved with the supp page that we’re on right now. I would ask that if you reframe your question in accordance with page 5 on the expenditures in question. I’ll turn it back to you, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think the issue here is not the exact expenditure; it’s the issue that’s raised by the proposed expenditures. In the early childhood example, for example, those are a re-profiling of internal funds. The issue is the same. It’s fancy footwork that re-profiles existing programs as new programs. That’s why I thought if we could deal with it, we really should deal with it all together here.
We’ll get that question answered by Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The same conditions or approach applies to the reallocated money. There was a request made for specific things. My recollection was there were a number of very specific things agreed to. The use of internal re-profiling of money to some positions, some centres, some other work, and so I am committing to this process both for the internal reallocation of funds as well as the funds that are here before this House, that there will be an opportunity to have that discussion. I’ll ask Mr. Lafferty if he wants to speak further to that. We have been trying to come to an understanding on a way forward with the committee’s request, so I do believe there is room for that type of discussion.
Mr. Miltenberger, I’ll decline that. As I said earlier, we were talking hypothetical from the Member. You’ve already made that commitment, so we will not do that. Mr. Lafferty has already answered that question in a previous response. I’ll get you to introduce your witnesses to the Chamber, please.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have Mike Aumond, deputy minister of Finance; Mr. Sandy Kalgutkar, deputy secretary to the FMB.
Mr. Kalgutkar and Mr. Aumond, welcome back to the Chamber again. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I respect your wishes there. Unfortunately, the Minister of ECE spoke the opposite of what the Minister of Finance said, but as this is the Minister of Finance’s budget, I will trust that he will work to ensure that that process is fulfilled through all our discussions on these new and re-profiled dollars and leave it at that.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Page 5, Health and Social Services, operations expenditures, community health programs, not previously authorized, $1.267 million. Total department, $1.267 million.
Agreed.
Page 6, Justice, operations expenditures, activity, not previously authorized, legal aid services, $47,000. Community justice and corrections, not previously authorized, $355,000. Total department, not previously authorized, $402,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Page 7, Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I see we’re addressing the Collective Agreement between the NWT Teachers’ Association and the Government of the Northwest Territories. I know that we have other agreements that have been in progress, the UNW, the doctors and so on. Is there a reason why those are not coming forward at this time, or will we be expecting those to come forward in the future and when? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Minister Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The doctors were dealt with through the regular process. This is being done with a sup, and the UNW, which is currently being ratified, will come forward in the fall through a supplementary appropriation. Thank you.
Again, page 7, committee. Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013, department, subject, Education, Culture and Employment, operations expenditures, activity, not previously authorized, education and culture, $782,000. Total department, not previously authorized, $782,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Page 8, Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013, department, subject, Environment and Natural Resources, operations expenditures, activity, environment, not previously authorized, $1.700 million. Total department, not previously authorized, $1.700 million. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Does committee agree that we’ve concluded consideration of Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. At this point, I’d like to thank the Minister. I’d like to thank our guests for joining us today. Sergeant-at-Arms, if you could please escort our witnesses out of the Chamber. Thank you very much.
Mr. Menicoche, what is the wish of the committee?
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I move that consideration of Tabled Document 27-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 27-17(3) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
A motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. The motion is not debatable. Carried.
---Carried
Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that we report progress.
A motion is on the floor to report progress. The motion is order. The motion is not debatable. The motion is carried.
---Carried
I will now rise and report progress. Thank you, committee.
May I have the report of Committee of the Whole? Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee has been considering Tabled Document 27-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 1, 2012-2013, and would like to report progress and that consideration of Tabled Document 27-13(3) is concluded and that the House concur with those estimates and that an appropriation bill to be based thereon be introduced without delay. I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Do you have a seconder? Thank you, Ms. Bisaro.
---Carried
Mr. Speaker, orders of the day for Tuesday, June 12, 2012, at 1:30 p.m.:
Prayer
Ministers’ Statements
Members’ Statements
Returns to Oral Questions
Recognition of Visitors in the Gallery
Acknowledgements
Oral Questions
Written Questions
Returns to Written Questions
Replies to Opening Address
Petitions
Reports of Standing and Special Committees
Reports of Committees on the Review of Bills
Tabling of Documents
Notices of Motion
Notices of Motion for First Reading of Bills
Motions
First Reading of Bills
Second Reading of Bills
Bill 5, Legal Aid Act
Consideration in Committee of the Whole of Bills and Other Matters
Tabled Document 2-17(3), Commissioner’s Opening Address: Creating the Conditions for Success
Tabled Document 17-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 7, 2010-2011
Tabled Document 18-17(3), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 2010-2011
Bill 1, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act
Bill 3, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act
Committee Report 1-17(3), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the 2010-2011 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories
Committee Report 2-17(3), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the 2010-2011 Annual Report of the Northwest Territories Human Rights Commission Annual Report
Report of Committee of the Whole
Third Reading of Bills
Orders of the Day
