Thank you. Minister of MACA.
Thank you. Yeah, the Member is correct about the meeting. We are working with the chair of the committee to find a time that we'll meet there. And we apologize, it hasn't been done in the timely manner.
In regards to positions, I know that we have assistant fire marshals in each of the regions. And then out of the headquarters office, I would have to get with your permission, get the deputy minister to provide more clarity on that. Thank you.
Thank you. Deputy minister Gareau.
Thank you. In headquarters, there are three positions. And as Minister Thompson mentioned, we have five regional assistant fire marshal positions, one in each region. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The emergency management with the flooding, you know, the amounts that were allocated, how much of that money of that that was used, the $35,823,000, how much of that was do you have the breakdown of that allocations, Madam Chair, for monies that stayed in the North and the monies that have gone somewhere else? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Member for I'm sorry, Minister of MACA.
Yes, thank you. Yes, so we do provide committee with the breakdown. As for the communities where if the money stayed in the North and that, I'll turn to the deputy minister to provide further detail. Thank you.
Thank you. Deputy minister Gareau.
Thank you, Madam Chair. As the Minister noted, we do provide monthly reports to standing committee, and I don't have the exact breakdown with me but the majority of the money we have spent has been with northern contractors. I was going to quote a number but I'm sorry, I don't have that detail with me. It is the majority of the funding for contractors. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Thebacha.
I don't have any other questions. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm just curious in looking at the 911 program, I notice that there is an increase here this year by about $500,000. It's my understanding that in the coming years we will no longer be able or the levy cap will be finished. Is the department's intention to raise the levy for 911 users? I guess in in other words, pass that cost along to the people of the territory? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
Yes, thank you. The Member's correct, we've looked at this. This is something that we're looking at moving forward because we had a cap on it for three years. Now as we move forward, we are going to be looking at the levy, user pay sort of approach to it. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, does the Minister commit to coming back to committee before a decision is made whether to increase that levy? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I just also want to reiterate some of the concerns I hear around the Office of the Fire Marshal and its inability to keep up with its workload.
I guess I don't want to reiterate everything my colleague from Yellowknife North said, but I do want to see a commitment there for a real indepth look at what's happening there and how it is impacting us. As our supply chains and timeframes get a lot tighter for projects in the North, it's going to become more critical that the Office of the Fire Marshal moves plans through faster or does their inspections faster. So if I could have the Minister speak to that? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
Thank you. Yes, so we are looking at a contract services right now to address this challenge that we have presently facing. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I guess my next question is around emergency management such and given that everything that's happened this weekend, is it that the RCMP does all search and rescue operations in the Northwest Territories or does some of this fall under the purview of the department? Thank you.
Thank you. Member for MACA.
I don't want to give the wrong answers so I'm going to turn to the deputy minister. I think I know what the answer is, and I think it starts with Y, but I'm going to turn to the deputy minister for clarity on that. Thank you.
Thank you. Deputy minister Gareau.
Thank you. Yes, the Minister is correct. It is the RCMP that have the lead currently for search and rescue, with partners, community governments, and the GNWT assisting when and where required. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
So can the Minister or the deputy minister explain how that would differ then from the work that Justice is doing with the RCMP, including the work of the coroner? Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister of MACA.
I apologize, we'll have to get back to the Member on that. That there, I'm don't know. I don't have the answer, sorry.
Okay. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yeah, that's fine. I sometimes do better when I'm getting something I can read instead of listening, especially at this point in session.
I guess my next question is just I've been looking around in the MACA website, and I don't actually see any definition of what the public safety division's role is in the Northwest Territories. So perhaps that may be why it's a little bit hard to clarify their role and what they're doing with other departments.
So can the Minister or the deputy minister speak to what is the philosophy there and what is the public safety division's guiding principles? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
For that detail, I'll turn to the deputy minister. Thank you.
Thank you. Deputy minister Gareau.
Thank you. The public safety division is the lead agency in the GNWT to administer the Emergency Management Act as well as coordinate the emergency management organization.
It also provides other public safety functions around consumer affairs, real estate, the Office of the Fire Marshal, and the 911 program operated by the NWT.
Yeah, the main function is to assist community governments in those public safety functions that fall within the community government area as well as the lead GNWT department on public safety other public safety matters. Thanks.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I guess then my next question is what role does this department, then, play in arctic defence and up in the North, how do they liaise with the department of natural I can't talk national defence and the federal government. Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
For that detail, I'll turn to the deputy minister. Thank you.
Thank you. Deputy minister Gareau.
Thank you. There's a working relationship at the staff level between the public safety staff and the federal defence staff located in the Northwest Territories. They participate on active live exercises. Members may be familiar with things like Operation Nanook, those types of exercises.
There's ongoing training offered between the two organizations, frequent collaboration on Arctic security matters, recognizing that it is the federal government that has the lead for that function. But there's a strong working relationship at the staff level around those matters. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Great Slave.
Thank you, Madam Chair. And I'm glad to hear that there is some sort of a collaboration or conversation happening there. I think this is a good time to maybe put forth, again, the idea of a public safety department versus having it piecemeal across several different departments given that we are now living in a new world, as everyone likes to say, our new normal of continuing pandemics, greater climate change emergencies, etcetera. We have heard other colleagues speak to the mystery of why Lands and MACA are two different departments and such and so perhaps maybe an evolution of one of those departments could be a public safety department. Could the Minister speak of whether or not this is being considered? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of MACA.
So a public safety department, no, not right yet. We are having conversations on how to better utilize our departments moving forward for the residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Madam Chair.
