Debates of March 2, 2005 (day 47)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member asked for a ministerial commitment to continue to work on this issue with the SideDoor and Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority past the end of the fiscal year. I’ve indicated that, yes, we are going to continue to do this. It is an issue that’s not going to stop April 1st. So, yes, we are going to continue on this. I do not make these commitments lightly. There are people recording the proceedings of this House in Health and Social Services, so we will be moving on this. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 517-15(3): Funding For A Yellowknife Youth Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate this, it’s just that you can never be as certain as you’d like to have it. Mr. Speaker, could the Minister indicate whether or not the budget that this House just passed included any elements there that could specifically fall into funding a facility or program money like this? I also heard that in Inuvik there is a youth group there that is having a problem with funding and I’m just wondering if the government has separate pockets of money that look after the needs of the youth in this way. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 517-15(3): Funding For A Yellowknife Youth Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, with regard to the specific issue of youth at night, especially on the weekends, and being on the streets, we’ve been dealing with this under the issue of homelessness for the short term. We’re working on a longer-term homelessness strategy as I’m also the Minister responsible for the homeless. I’m working in conjunction with my colleagues, Ministers from the social envelope, and we’ve put together a short term budget that is before this House now in a supplementary and we intend to come forward with further planning. In Yellowknife we want to continue to work with the coalition as well, and there is also access to federal dollars. So we’re trying to come up with a way to deal with both the issue of absolute homelessness, who are those folks who have absolutely no place to stay, and the issue of relative homelessness, which are those who may be inadequately housed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Supplementary To Question 517-15(3): Funding For A Yellowknife Youth Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My understanding is that the SideDoor specifically has funding until the end of the fiscal year. Could I get the Minister to commit to provide me with correspondence that speaks to the funding arrangement for the next year, given that he’s going to work on this? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 517-15(3): Funding For A Yellowknife Youth Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will confirm in writing to the Member what I’ve just said in this House. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Premier. Yesterday in the House I asked the Premier about the numbers that were used to justify the reductions in the services in Justice in Hay River, and the Premier shared with me that the Audit Bureau of the Finance department would be looking at the methodology in these numbers. I have to say that I want to thank the Premier for that because, regardless of the outcome, I see it as some small step of progress on this subject which I’ve been harping about for some time now. I want to thank the Premier for that. I would like to ask the Premier a few questions about that though. Would he be prepared to share publicly what the scope of the question is that was posed to the Audit Bureau so we know exactly what’s being looked at? Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Justice has asked the Minister of Finance to have the Audit Bureau look at the methodology that was used to arrive at the numbers. They will do that. Mr. Speaker, I want to be very, very careful that I’m not politically stepping into the realm of the Audit Bureau and somehow compromising their impartiality on this. So, Mr. Speaker, whatever I do I want to be very, very careful about that. So I can’t say that we would share what they say publicly. I can’t make that commitment right now. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Supplementary To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just think it’s good to know that we operate within a government that tries to be as transparent as possible and while I understand the Premier not wanting to be prescriptive about what the Audit Bureau may do with this, I just want to make sure that the question is comprehensive enough that it actually does some good because this is going to require some work.

Might I also say, Mr. Speaker, that I’m very pleased that as of this morning I’d already received a call from the Audit Bureau asking for input. I was very impressed by that, especially given the fact that the Audit Bureau, according to Mr. Hawkins, is quite short staffed.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, pending the outcome of this work that the Audit Bureau is going to do, would the Premier agree to put the reductions in Hay River on hold until the results of the review are available? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Mr. Speaker, I’m pleased that the Audit Bureau has contacted the Member and I want to assure this House that I didn’t have any part of that. That’s something that they would have done on their own. I will stay away from the Audit Bureau’s work because, again, as I said, their impartiality is the most important in their business. Mr. Speaker, the one thing I can’t do is change the amount of money that’s in the budget that is before this House. It’s before the House. The money that was identified as a savings has been identified in the budget, it’s a reduction in the budget. I can’t put pieces of this budget on hold. We’re going through a process here and I have to respect that process of reviewing the budget. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Supplementary To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well then I really have to question what this entire debate in Committee of the Whole with respect to department’s budget is all about if we have no opportunity as Members to affect any change in that budget. As Members all know, we’re already looking at expansion of government presence and government roles in various regions throughout the Northwest Territories for the upcoming fiscal year that are nowhere indicated in the budget. So I’m a bit disappointed with the Premier’s answer on that. All I’m asking for is that if the decisions were made on good and sound information and the Audit Bureau’s analysis is going to bear that out or not, I just don’t want anything irretrievable or irreversible to be done until those results are in. I think it’s a reasonable request. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Mr. Speaker, it’s unfortunate that when we reviewed business plans that this item hadn’t been identified early on, because that’s where we can make changes, as we build our business plans and build our main estimates. Mr. Speaker, having said that, if we find as we move along in the next fiscal year and so on after this budget is approved, then there are other ways of changing the budget through supplementaries and special warrants and so on. That’s the proper way of doing it. I can’t, as the Premier, suddenly start changing this budget that we’re reviewing here, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Final supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Supplementary To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in fact when the standing committee’s report on Social Programs is entered into the record when Justice comes up, I think it’s unfair for the Minister to say that this had not been brought up in the main estimates discussions, because that I don’t believe is correct. Mr. Speaker, I’m not asking the Minister to change the budget, I’m asking him to put actions related to the budget on hold in Hay River until such time as these numbers can be analyzed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 518-15(3): Scope Of Justice Audit Review

Mr. Speaker, the proposed changes in Hay River -- I’m assuming she’s referring to Dene K’onia and SMCC -- are proposed changes that will happen, assuming this budget is approved, after April 1st. That is a time we would be making the final decisions on it. That’s where we would have to decide if something was wrong in here, then we would have to look at a supplementary or look at doing it some other way. I can’t change that today, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last week the honourable Premier, Joe Handley, and Mr. McLeod drove up our winter road into the Sahtu. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Transportation. In terms of the winter road complaints from the Sahtu people and the increased volume of traffic into the Sahtu due to the oil and gas exploration, I would ask the Minister if he would inform this House and the people in the Sahtu what the plans are of the department to improve the road conditions in our region for next year. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. McLeod.

Return To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the trip into the Sahtu and Nahendeh was a real good opportunity for us, as Cabinet Ministers and the Premier, to have some discussions with a number of communities along the way. I think we had, over the weekend, probably around six meetings with different organizations in different communities and we had a lot of discussions. The winter road was always on the agenda and we certainly had an opportunity to take a firsthand look at the road. We thought it was a very scenic drive. There are some stretches that probably could use some improvement. This upcoming fiscal year, our contracts that we have in place for maintenance are coming to an end. They were five-year contracts. We will be reviewing those. We’ll be taking a step back to look at our budgets that are allocated for this stretch of road. We also wanted to do some review in terms of talking to the contractors to see what suggestions they may have, what issues they bring forward. We also wanted to take the opportunity to meet with all the players in the industry who are utilizing our road and see if we can come together in a more coordinated fashion for the upcoming winter seasons. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the people in the Sahtu region’s favourite song is “On the Road Again.” They just can’t wait to get back on that road again. Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister if his department would consider, because of the increased volume of traffic in the Sahtu region and the oil and gas exploration, moving one of the offices to have some presence in the Sahtu. Because right now our offices are outside of the Sahtu, for example, in Fort Simpson and other regions. I want to ask the Minister if he would consider having his office presence in the Sahtu region. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Mr. Speaker, the issue of having a permanent presence in the region was something that did come up. We recognize there is a lot more resource development activity in the Sahtu and we also realize there is a lot more traffic. There are people in the communities that now have vehicles and there is a lot more community traffic travelling south during the time that this winter road is open. I will certainly commit to consider having a position in that region. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the volume has increased and I would ask the Minister if he would consider advising us on this side of the House in terms of finishing up the winter bridges program. I know some people were looking at an all-weather road into the Sahtu. Would the Minister consider having that discussion with the people in the Sahtu in terms of having an all-weather road into the Sahtu region? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Mr. Speaker, all-weather roads in a number of different areas in the Northwest Territories are always at the top of our list. If we can find some federal investment to create all-weather roads into different areas, we certainly will pursue it. At this time, it’s still the jurisdiction of the federal government. We are doing what we can to increase the season. We’re putting in bridges. This year we have started a sign campaign; we’re putting 650 signs over this year and next year onto the road. We realize that it’s probably only half as much as what we really need, but it’s going to really improve the safety of the road. We’ve also set a speed limit for the road that will also contribute towards the safety. We have increased enforcement. I’m not in a position at this point to point to any new dollars that we have to commit to an all-weather road, but I certainly will commit to the Member that I will continue to pursue it whenever I can at every opportunity that I have. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to again commend the two Ministers and commend the Minister of Transportation for coming to the Sahtu. It’s a good sign to come to the people in the smaller communities. I’d ask the Minister if he would commit to looking at the all-weather road project. Would he consider doing it from the discussions from the community base where they would connect from the different regions and communities before they push down south? Would they look at, having been with the Sahtu people, community approaches in terms of an all-weather road? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 519-15(3): Road Conditions In The Sahtu Region

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. During our presentation of our budget, we had indicated that we’re doing a number of things across the board. We want to update our Highway Strategy. We have received an agreement for our SIF money and we want to put a proposal together, a strategy together to approach the federal government. As part of this strategy, we’re going to change our focus somewhat. Our last Corridors for Canada proposal that went forward was focused on resource development and reconstruction of roads that were in areas impacted by resource development. This time around we still want to be able to invest money into resource areas that are impacted by resource development, but we also want to be able to focus on connecting communities. We realize there’s a high cost of living in the Northwest Territories and a way to lower the cost of living would be to have good transportation links. That would be our focus. We are working on that document now and we’ll have that over the next while for a review by committee. We’ll present it to committee and get their comments on it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question today is for the honourable Minister of RWED. Recently, on the weekend I did manage to make it over to Wrigley, but that’s another story.

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The needs in Wrigley, Mr. Speaker, are they still need capacity building assistance help with developing their communities and EDO position. It’s much like many of the smaller communities in my riding, including Jean Marie River. What are the plans for the Minister of RWED to assist and aid these communities with respect to establishing economic development officer positions? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, Mr. Bell.

Return To Question 520-15(3): Establishing Community Economic Development Capacity

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can’t, for the Member, indicate what the exact arrangements are in Wrigley and Jean Marie River in terms of EDO support. I can get that information for the Member, but we do have a couple of different arrangements that vary by community and vary depending on what the community’s interests are. In some communities, in some regions, we have RWED staff that fill that role and through the community transfer initiative some time back, RWED was able to transfer funding to communities to have them provide the service for the community and on that community’s behalf. So it depends on the community as to the option they’ve chosen. We have found that some communities that initially took on that role have given it back to RWED for a number of reasons. We did have some discussion, as well, Mr. Speaker, with committee about the adequacy of EDO funding by community and by region. A number of other Members have raised that in the House and that is something I intend to investigate and pursue. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

Supplementary To Question 520-15(3): Establishing Community Economic Development Capacity

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I guess with the imminent split of the two departments, I guess the communities would want to know which department will be the applicable department in terms of accessing these funds that were provided in the past. Which department would fund that particular EDO or that particular sector which is developing capacity, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Bell.

Further Return To Question 520-15(3): Establishing Community Economic Development Capacity

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of existing arrangements, we believe it will be a seamless transition from RWED to the two new departments. But it would be ITI that would be responsible for providing the submissions to communities and staffing these positions where we have that arrangement. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

Supplementary To Question 520-15(3): Establishing Community Economic Development Capacity