Debates of March 4, 2005 (day 49)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sadness that I speak to an event that reminds us of the dangers facing those who put their lives on the line to make our communities safer. Yesterday, four RCMP officers were shot and killed while investigating a suspected marijuana grow operation near Rochfort Bridge, Alberta.

This serious and tragic event has touched all of us, especially the officers’ colleagues here in the Northwest Territories who are represented in this House this morning by Inspector Greg Morrow and Inspector Roch Fortin of “G” division. It also reminds us of the thanks we owe to those RCMP officers in our northern communities and across Canada who risk their lives to protect the public.

On behalf of the government, Members of the Assembly and the people of the Northwest Territories, I offer heartfelt sympathies to the friends and families of the officers who lost their lives yesterday.

Mr. Speaker, I would ask that Members rise and observe a moment of silence to remember the fallen officers.

----Moment of Silence

Thank you, Mr. Dent. I am sure I can speak on behalf of all Members in the House in joining you in passing on our condolences to the families and to the force as well. It is indeed a sad day for the history of Canada when something that terrible happens. It reminds us how close to home it can actually happen. I am sure I can speak on behalf of all Members in passing on our condolences.

Mr. Speaker, I, too, want to share my sadness and shock at the tragic events that occurred in the tiny community of Mayerthorpe, Alberta. I express

heartfelt sadness at the loss to the families and to the force of the RCMP and to all peacekeepers across Canada. Watching and listening to this horrible story yesterday, brought to mind events that happened in this community, Mr. Speaker. It seems a long, long time ago now. But the events of the Giant Mine tragedy were so much like what Mayerthorpe is experiencing today. It is something that goes right to the heart and the soul of a community.

Mr. Speaker, the consequences of what happened yesterday will no doubt take many, many different forms and shapes over the weeks and months to come. As legislators and lawmakers, I hope we can engage in that to our fullest ability, but for today the message I want to send from me and from this Legislature and this community is to the families of the slain officers and to the community. I wish them all the very best in the days and weeks to come. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the constituents of Range Lake, I, too, would like to take a moment this day to pay respect to the four RCMP officers killed in the line of duty yesterday in Alberta. Mr. Speaker, this is a very sad and tragic event in Canadian history and I hope that the families and colleagues of the four officers who so bravely gave their lives and service to their country find some comfort in knowing that the whole nation shares their loss and sadness this day and we are sending along our prayers and deepest sympathies. This is certainly a reminder how these officers put their lives on the line every time they report for work.

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to send special well wishes and condolences to the RCMP “G” division district in the North to the commanding officer, Everett Summerfield, and Inspector Morrow and Inspector Fortin in the gallery, and all men and women in uniform in the North who give us safety, who give their service and who do such a great job in looking after the safety and well-being of our people. I think it is a day for us to all remember how important their work is and how grateful we are for those people who do that job for us. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I, too, on behalf of myself personally, my family, the people of Weledeh and the people of the Northwest Territories, want to express my condolences to the families and colleagues across Canada to the officers who were killed on duty. I want, Mr. Speaker, though to go beyond that and make a statement on something because I think it is important. These officers want us to carry on with the good things that go on in this world and make it a better place to live and to be.

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this occasion to switch a little bit here and say that I want to wish a person a happy birthday on her 90th birthday. Mrs. Mary Kendi from Aklavik is celebrating her 90th birthday today.

---Applause

I want to take time to admire Mrs. Kendi for her commitment to her family, her community and her culture. Mary has proven herself over and over again, with her kind generosity to many visitors to Aklavik. She has made many people feel welcome to her home and has never been afraid to show her true identity. In fact, I could say, Mr. Speaker, that Mrs. Kendi is someone, even at her age, who attended practically all, if not every meeting that I have ever been at, she has been there and she is certainly ready to speak on behalf of her community.

Mrs. Kendi has been called upon, from time to time over the past few decades, to identify works of clothing from the Gwich’in heritage and many museums and has been inspirational in keeping our traditional languages alive. Her contribution to the Gwich’in culture has benefited all of us in the Territories. I want to take this time to wish Mary Kendi a very happy 90th birthday and to thank her for all that she has done for those around her and also to wish her good health and happiness. Mahsi cho.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, mahsi cho. I, too, would like to say briefly that my condolences go out to all the loved ones involved in the loss of the RCMP officers in the line of duty. At this time I would like to say a special thank you to all the RCMP officers that serve us in the North. Mahsi cho.

---Applause

I would beg the Speaker's indulgence and I would also like to present my Member's statement. I am very concerned with the transfer of the responsibility of social housing from the NWT Housing Corporation to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. I am yet to be convinced that this is a necessary program of refinement. It took us 30 years to get to where we are today in delivering housing programs at the community level. It is not perfect, but it works for the majority of clients and the NWT Housing Corporation.

The question for me now is how badly things will get screwed up before they get better. With apologies to Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, it seems to me, Mr. Speaker, that this initiative is on a four-year mission to blindly go where no man has gone before.

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, any time there is a fundamental shift in the way government delivers programs and services to residents, there are problems. Issues like new people trying to deliver programs they are not familiar with, employees from the NWT Housing Corporation having to adapt to the corporate culture of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment and just general confusion of which department will be responsible for which programs, will all combine to cause problems for residents trying to access the social housing network.

For this year, Mr. Speaker, the plan is to continue with the status quo. The local housing authorities will deliver social housing programs on behalf of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. The funding to deliver these programs will be transferred from ECE to the Housing Corporation and will flow to the local housing authorities in the same way it always has.

However, Mr. Speaker, I am concerned with how social housing will be delivered in 2006-07. How will my constituents be treated? Will there be sudden changes in program eligibility? Will income thresholds be calculated differently? How will income support workers be involved? If support workers are involved, will social housing clients even want to deal with them? Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my Member’s statement.

The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude you statement, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, colleagues, for allowing me to conclude my Member's statement.

These questions and many more, Mr. Speaker, will need to be answered in the coming months. The Department of Education, Culture and Employment will have to roll out any changes to the way social housing is delivered in a measured manner over a period of time, so that people can adjust in a timely manner.

Public consultation is another issue that needs to be addressed, Mr. Speaker. I do not want to see the department blindly going ahead and implementing new social housing and income security policies without input from the people who access the system. I will be following up with the Minister of ECE in the weeks to come. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Before we go on I would just like to draw your attention to the gallery for one of our Members here. Robert McLeod has his wife, Judy, and daughter Kimberly, in the gallery. Also with them is Donovan Avery and Richard Ross, Jr. They have to leave right away because they are here representing Inuvik in the curling playdowns.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. At this time, I, too, wish to express my condolences to the fallen RCMP and their families. Mr. Speaker, it’s not too much to ask, as this Assembly has done, to take a moment in silence as we truly express our concern for what has happened.

Mr. Speaker, there is no way I can express in such a way to say the RCMP are truly a pillar in our communities. There is a connection in every way. They represent role models to the young, they keep us safe at night, and they protect our families.

Mr. Speaker, I will say in closing that the RCMP truly are a symbol of Canada in the importance of upholding our laws and as lawmakers we have to ensure that our RCMP, as well as all our enforcement agencies, are enabled with proper tools to do their jobs. Every day they are in the line of fire and yesterday was a sad reminder that they go out there to protect us and sometimes put themselves in front of that line of fire and we have to make sure that we do our jobs to support them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to send our condolences to the RCMP families and their loved ones. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the Northern Strategy as, unfortunately, I was unable to participate in the debate during Committee of the Whole.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to inform this government of my support for the Northern Strategy and its goals and objectives. This has been a long journey for the people of the Northwest Territories in our struggle to take our rightful place in Canada and be recognized for our contribution. Without an agreement, Mr. Speaker, protecting our resources and revenues expected from the diamond mines and oil and gas, we will always be dependant on the federal government.

Mr. Speaker, I believe it is about time we left the nest and built our own. The Northern Strategy is our ticket to independence and the right for the people of the Northwest Territories to one day become self-sufficient, self-reliant and a healthy, viable territory. We have the commitment from the Prime Minister to move forward with the Northern Strategy. The commitment is one thing, Mr. Speaker, but there will still be a lot of hard work, determination and focus needed to get everything signed, sealed and delivered.

I say this, Mr. Speaker, because I speak firsthand of how we, as Inuvialuit, rejoiced when the Inuvialuit Final Agreement was signed and sealed. We are still working on getting it delivered. This government must recognize the importance of the Northern Strategy and concentrate on arriving at a deal for resource revenue sharing and devolution, rather than worrying about changing the name of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, the time is now and it is the responsibility of this government to take advantage of this small window of opportunity. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, on behalf of the Sahtu region, want to send our condolences to the families of the RCMP members who were killed; especially when in our small communities they become like family members.

I would like to do my Member's statement, Mr. Speaker. I want to say that today is an historical day for hockey in the Northwest Territories. In 1825, Sir John Franklin wrote in his journal about hockey being played on Great Bear Lake. Mr. Speaker, do we know that the birthplace of one of our past-time sports, hockey, was played in Deline on the largest hockey rink in Canada?

Mr. Speaker, what is this government doing or planning to do to recognize the historical significance in Canadian hockey? We in the Sahtu, especially in Deline, are looking for support for tourism. Why hasn’t this government laced up its skates and teamed up with the community of Deline to be recognized as an historical spot in Canada?

---Applause

Mr. Speaker, we need our government to be on our side, to get in the game with the Sahtu people of the Northwest Territories and to get out there with the rest of Canada and hit the facts hard. Hockey Night in Canada began in Deline in 1825 under the moonlight, stars and northern lights of Great Bear Lake. Mr. Speaker, the community of Deline is celebrating this historical event by hosting a weekend of fun and strengthening their friendships through planned events this weekend. Mr. Speaker, the community of Deline has future stars in many sports and we must get on the same side and have our top three lines from this government to tic-tac-toe through the game and score the big goal for the Northwest Territories in hockey.

Mr. Speaker, I believe I have witnessed the fancy stick handling by the Ministers during the last few weeks on that side, and I believe that that skill could be used in an effort to utilize in the rightful place to call Hockey Night in Canada at Great Bear Lake. Mahsi cho.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to offer my condolences this morning; I think especially to the mothers of these young men. I have two sons myself that are probably about the same age as a couple of these young RCMP officers who died. We do what we can to protect our children, but these are very honourable callings to take up the job to protect the public and the public safety, and I certainly do send out condolences to the families and especially the mothers of these young men today.

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to talk about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, specifically as it affects adults. Mr. Speaker, FASD was identified as a medical condition in 1973. We know that in provinces or territories with high levels of alcohol consumption, FASD is widespread. FASD is a lifelong condition. Mr. Speaker, a child with FASD becomes an adult with FASD. Adults that have FASD often behave in socially inappropriate ways, are unable to hold down a job and frequently have problems with the law. In many cases, they are labelled as troublemakers or bad people, when in fact they have a disability and require support to be successful contributing members of society.

The unfortunate reality, Mr. Speaker, is that FASD often goes undiagnosed. Without the diagnosis, individuals do not qualify for medical or financial support that they would otherwise be entitled to as would anyone with a mental health illness. We spend thousands of dollars putting people through the justice system, yet we fail to provide a diagnostic team to properly assess individuals with FASD.

Mr. Speaker, the diagnosis of FASD is a collaborative effort by professionals in a variety of fields. To date there is no available information of the numbers of people with FASD in the Northwest Territories because of the lack of a complete diagnostic team and screening tools. How do we know, Mr. Speaker, whom to help and what type of help they require and the amount of money to spend on FASD if we don’t know the numbers?

Mr. Speaker, adults suffering from FASD have a variety of needs for special supports and services to give them a chance to live a productive life with their families and within their communities. If we are going to make a final diagnosis of this condition and offer the proper support, Mr. Speaker, then we need to have a team in place for that purpose. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I, too, on behalf of my family and the constituents of Kam Lake, wish to offer condolences to the fallen RCMP members who lost their lives near Mayerthorpe yesterday.

In 2003, the last year when statistics are available, the weigh scale in Enterprise saw 176 million litres of diesel oil and nearly 34 million kilograms of ammonium nitrate, which is a prime component in making explosives, go through. As you are aware, Mr. Speaker, the vast majority of these dangerous goods were either destined for Yellowknife or for the diamond mines further north.

At all hours of the day and night, including those times when children are walking to and from school, these trucks, heavily laden with dangerous goods, rumble past or through the residential areas of Yellowknife, many on their way to the Kam Lake Industrial Park. The sheer volume of dangerous goods going through the residential areas of Yellowknife and the potential for accidents or spills is more than enough reason to advance the building of the Kam Lake access road.

Airport Road in Yellowknife is seeing a tremendous amount of heavy truck traffic. We certainly need to put an emphasis on public safety. The number of reported spills of dangerous goods in the Northwest Territories has increased sharply, from six in 2001, to 22 in 2002, and 25 reported in 2003. Despite the increase in the amount of dangerous goods being transported, the number of ticket situations has decreased. To date, the city of Yellowknife has fortunately been able to avoid a large spill or accident. We cannot continue to rely on luck, Mr. Speaker. We have to ensure that this access road is built, and many in the community see it as an essential piece of public infrastructure that will address the issue of public safety. Mr. Speaker, I have spoken in the House on several occasions about the Kam Lake access road and the need to address public safety and I will continue to do so, until the road does become a reality. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In light of the news that we heard yesterday about the senseless killing of the four RCMP officers in Northern Alberta, I just want to offer my condolences, and also from my constituents, to the families, friends and co-workers of these four brave men who were killed in the line of duty.

Mr. Speaker, we have said a lot of things in this House over the last couple of days about the services offered to us by the RCMP. I am sure that my colleagues would join me in saying that we support and appreciate the work that they do and I hope that they do their jobs under the safest circumstances possible.

We do a lot of complaining about the safety of our communities. It is not only in the hands of the police, Mr. Speaker, it is also in the hands of the community and our community leaders to help the RCMP to make sure that our communities remain crime-free so that we can avoid the tragedy like the one in Northern Alberta.

In closing, Mr. Speaker, I hope we can all learn something from this tragedy and volunteer to help our RCMP and our local police when our help is asked for. Mahsi.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are to the Honourable Brendan Bell, the Minister of RWED, just with respect to the new trapping initiatives that he mentioned earlier this week in a Minister's statement of support to the traditional economy. I am just not too familiar with how it is going to be rolled out. Is that new initiative beginning April 1st? Perhaps the Minister can detail that for me, Mr. Speaker.

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

Return To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. These programs that we set up some couple of years back, I believe two years now running, continue on. What we are seeing is an increased uptake and an increase in the level of trapping. I think that much of it has to do with the prices that these furs are fetching at auction. The market has been particularly good. The Asia Pacific market is opening up for our furs, along with the traditional interest we have seen from the European trading area. So this is all good news for our trappers. I think in addition, anecdotally, we have noticed that people who are working in mines and have two weeks on and two weeks off are able in their down time to pursue these traditional activities, and that’s certainly something we support. But our programs are ongoing and we do facilitate and help trappers get their furs to market and we also provide them with a grubstake amount the beginning of the season to get them back in action for the next year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Supplementary To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’m totally in support of initiatives put forward by RWED with respect to this, because on my last trip home to Fort Simpson there were lot of young trappers who were out there and they are doing it on their own. So is there a contact person in Fort Simpson or even in Fort Liard that this program will be rolled out with, or a contact person to talk to? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Bell.

Further Return To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The renewable resource officers in each community are responsible for the administration of the program. They work with local trappers to ensure that they’re there to take in furs as trappers come off the traplines and then get the furs to market for those trappers, and also providing them with their advances and their bonus if the fur comes in at a level that warrants a bonus and we’re fairly certain that it will fetch a high price at market. So it’s the renewable resource officers. I’ll certainly provide contact information for the Member, but I know that at the beginning of each season one of the tasks and one of the roles for the RRO is to go out and meet with various community organizations and ensure that we advertise the program and talk about the program so that everybody knows about it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Supplementary To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Perhaps the Minister can detail for me if there is assistance in terms of purchasing trapping products or equipment such as snowmobiles and traps. Is that part of the new program that is going to be rolled out? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Bell.

Further Return To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The grubstake program that’s available at the beginning of the season for trappers who harvested a certain number of pelts the previous year -- I can’t remember exactly what the number is, but I think it’s around 20 -- those who have met that threshold are eligible for the grubstake amount of money and I think it's in the neighbourhood of $5,000 to help them get their equipment up and ready for the season. So if they want to do repairs to their snow machine or purchase additional traps, that’s what that money can be used for. We have had a program in past years in order to comply with the agreement on humane trapping, that we signed with a number of countries. We had provided replacement traps for those who brought in traps that were no longer considered humane and I can certainly check and see if that is ongoing, but I think most of those traps are out of commission now. We’ve done that replacement. I’m sure we’ve spent over $1 million replacing traps across the Northwest Territories for people. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

Supplementary To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Does the support to the traditional economy have room for something like getting that certain age group between 50 and 65 out there assisting the young people learning how to trap? Was that program designed with that thought in mind, or is there a way we can do that, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Mr. Bell.

Further Return To Question 540-15(3): Support For Trapping Activities

I certainly think that that’s a great idea and it’s one that we have used in the past to take an on-the-land program where we’ve had elders work with youth in the community, usually through the schools and usually through support from the RWED office, to take young people out trapping and make sure that they understand and learn the skills so that there’s some transfer of that traditional knowledge down to the next generation. I think that that’s certainly the way forward for this program. I think the positive sign is that there seems to be more interest in trapping. It is becoming more lucrative. I think that bodes well for the future. We’ll continue to work with youth in communities to ensure that this kind of programming is available. I think it’s certainly a good idea. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t want to offend the Minister of Justice today, but I have no questions for him at this time.

---Laughter

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My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Mr. Speaker, I spoke in my Member’s statement about FASD. I think that the Minister is probably aware that we have some fairly major issues with FASD on a fairly broad-ranging scale of severity and of disability. I don’t believe though we have really quantified the problems sufficiently in the Northwest Territories and I do think that a lot of the people who are having difficulty with our education system and with our justice system are people who are undiagnosed as having FASD. I’d like to ask the Minister what is available right now in the Northwest Territories in terms of a screening tool and team with the qualifications necessary to identify this very pervasive condition. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Return To Question 541-15(3): Availability Of Screening Tools For FASD

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member has raised a very key issue as we talk about FASD. If you accept, as we do, the Health Canada statistics that nine out of every 1,000 children born is affected with FASD and if you extrapolate that back a number of decades, then it is very clear to see that FASD is not a child’s disease. It’s a lifelong issue and that the population in the society we have, there are, by those statistical estimates, hundreds if not thousands of undiagnosed people in our society. Not only here, but in every jurisdiction.

We are members of the Canada Northwest Partnership. We’re setting up a new research centre out of UBC with a satellite office in Calgary. There are screening capacities available, but screening is just a very preliminary first step. The actual assessment needs very specialized skills like a pediatric dysmorphologist, a psychiatric neurologist or neuro psychiatrist; sorry, or is it neuro psychologist? …it’s a neuro psychologist, I believe, among other things. So it is a team effort, as the Member said. It requires a family assessment and not just an individual assessment. We have some capacity on the screening side for any kind of assessments that are basically done on a case-by-case basis at this point, and I agree with the Member that the whole area of the diagnosis and service to adults is, as of yet, an unaddressed area. Thank you.

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

Supplementary To Question 541-15(3): Availability Of Screening Tools For FASD

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know it’s difficult to diagnose, but if it can be shown that an adult does suffer from FASD, are there any specific supports or is it recognized as a disability for the accompanying supports in the Northwest Territories?

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 541-15(3): Availability Of Screening Tools For FASD