Debates of March 9, 2005 (day 52)

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Final short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 575-15(3): School Attendance In The NWT

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister of Education, Culture and Employment just nailed it there by saying that there’s no question that attendance is a problem in the Northwest Territories. He just nailed it exactly. Mr. Speaker, he said use their funding. Well, funding is prescriptive. It takes all the wiggle room out of schools so they just can’t do whatever they want to do. It’s already implemented and tied to certain issues. So, Mr. Speaker, I really like this comment by saying that we will support them. Well, will we support them with direct funding to one social liaison worker for each district education authority? Will the Minister show some leadership and initiative and creativity to deal with some of these problems that are social envelope problems? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 575-15(3): School Attendance In The NWT

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t know where the Member gets the idea that the funding that we offer to school divisions now is prescriptive. There’s about $125 million that goes to schools. The only part of that that is prescriptive is the $7 million that’s stipulated to go into aboriginal languages and culture, and the $16 million that has to go into special needs. Other than that, it’s wide open. The schools can use the money as they see fit. We give them money that we say this portion is allocated for transportation, but we don’t require them to spend it on transportation. They can put the money where it makes the most sense in their communities. That’s the best way to deal with this issue, is to let the communities decide how to best handle it.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question today is for the Minister of Justice and it’s in regard to collection of judgment once someone wins a judgment from court. Mr. Speaker, the law we have with respect to collecting judgment in the North is very outdated, probably because it’s not something that’s on everybody’s mind all the time. The laws we have are that if you win a judgment and you want to collect against somebody and you have to file what’s called a garnishee, that only lasts only 10 days now. Which means everybody has to go to court and file it again, pay $5, then there are all sorts of expenses involved with that. Alberta, Mr. Speaker, recently made the laws so that the garnishee lasts a whole year, so there’s a lot less work on the courts and those who already have the judgments. I’d like to know from the Minister whether or not -- and I think the Minister might be working on this already -- the department might be interested in looking at updating this law. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Dent.

Return To Question 576-15(3): Updating Garnishee Legislation

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is right. I’ve had some discussions with the deputy minister on this issue because it has been raised from the private sector over the past six months. We are, right now, in the process of trying to decide what level of consultation, and how much of the act we should take out for consultation or whether we should do a focused amendment or propose a focused amendment just for this one issue. Right now, that’s the stage we’re at, is trying to determine just how far to go with the proposed amendment. The answer to the Member’s question is, yes, we’re looking at it. I would hope to be able to bring something forward to this House within this calendar year.

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

Supplementary To Question 576-15(3): Updating Garnishee Legislation

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m sure if he brings that proposal to this side of the House we’ll be happy to do the public hearing for him. Anyway, Mr. Speaker, I have another question that he might be able to look into while he’s considering the changes that I’ve mentioned already. That has to do with the limit on small claims court. Mr. Speaker, small claims are set up so that people can go and get their issues of dispute resolved without having to hire a lawyer and go to the bigger court. Right now you can only go there if you’re case is less than $10,000. Many courts across the country have changed that. Alberta, for example, has changed the limit to $50,000. I think we have a lot of room to manoeuvre between $10,000 and $50,000. I’m wondering if the Minister would consider looking at that, as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 576-15(3): Updating Garnishee Legislation

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I certainly will.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Statistics over the last few years, Mr. Speaker, have shown virtually no change in our rates of children living in low income situations, so I would like to ask the Minister responsible for these programs in our government, Mr. Dent, a pretty straightforward question. Why does child poverty persist here in the NWT in the midst of so much activity and so much wealth? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Return To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Mr. Speaker, I wish I had a clear, concise answer for that question. I don’t. I can’t say that child poverty exists because of one specific reason. There are a whole range of reasons that there is child poverty. We have, as a government, put a significant amount of money, as the Member noted in his statement, into programs over the last few years and I guess we must be just having trouble keeping up with the growth and the cost of living in an overheated economy. Because one would expect with the kind of investment that we’ve made with our small population, that more of a difference should have been seen. This government is struggling to find more money to put into social programs. One of the areas that we’re hoping to be able to tap into is resource revenue sharing. If we’re successful at seeing more money, then we’re going to have those resources available to put into these important social programs. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Mr. Speaker, government has a primary and fundamental responsibility to help those who are least able to help themselves. Children are at the very top of that list, for me. I would like to know if in the universal review that our government is undertaking of some 17 different lifestyle and social service programs are we going to make sure that the welfare of children is at the very top of our consideration in this review? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to assure the Member and this House that the government shares that concern. Children are the most important asset that we have and we need to make sure that we protect their potential to develop as they should. Yes, I can assure the Member that the process of reviewing our income security programs that is being led by my department will keep children in mind as one of the priorities as we’re undertaking that review.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Mr. Speaker, what does the Minister see as the biggest barriers that we face in terms of trying to turn this really shameful statistic around? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, it’s really tough to find one area that is the most important. If people don’t have economic opportunity, obviously their children are not going to enjoy the same sort of security that others would. You don’t have economic opportunity if you don’t have an education. You don’t tend to be as healthy if you don’t have an educated. There are a whole range of issues that we need to deal with in our society and we need to make sure that we have healthy people making healthy choices in healthy communities if we want to make sure that we deal with this. So we have a real challenge. But I think that if the Member is aware of what the Legislative Assembly as a whole has set out as our goal and strategic plan, our overall vision, that’s what we’re going to try and work for. The redesign of the Income Security Program is but one small part of that overall approach. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Final supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Supplementary To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Mr. Speaker, I would pose a question in a very objective way, I hope. That is to challenge the Minister to look within and to check our own attitudes and our own cultures and our own biases within ourselves as a Legislative Assembly, at the management levels and the senior policy-making levels of our departments. I believe that is probably where we need to start. I would leave one more question on the table as an illustration of that attitude, I guess, that we’re bringing to the table, too. That is, our consistent refusal, Mr. Speaker, to return the National Child Benefit to income support clients as a very real direct way that we can help those people lift themselves out of poverty. Why don’t we change that? Why don’t we start there? Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 577-15(3): Child Poverty In The NWT

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We certainly can examine that as we go through the whole review of the income security policies that we have. The National Child Benefit was a benefit proposed by the federal government to assist working parents, to encourage people to take that step from income support into the world of work where that was possible. All jurisdictions across Canada agreed that nobody on income support would be worse off, and we have made sure that is in fact the case in the Northwest Territories. We have increased benefits to people who are on income support since the National Child Benefit was put into place. We are going to, as part of the whole process, examine our approach. Right now, the approach is consistent with how the program is rolled out in its first inception. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Justice and I’d like to ask the Minister of Justice, going back to the petition I talked about in my Member’s statement, the fact that 98 inmates at North Slave Correctional Centre have signed a petition calling for an addiction treatment centre to be re-opened here in the Northwest Territories. I’m wondering what the Minister can tell me about how his department, the Department of Justice, works with Health and Social Services in trying to find out why inmates are in the correctional system and how we might be able to be proactive in trying not to have them come back. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister of Justice, Mr. Dent.

Return To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the changes in the correctional system that we’re trying to implement as we’ve moved into the new facility is a new approach, more of a case management approach where we have workers who work with individuals who try and assess what their problems might be and what their specific needs might be. The department does purchase space and programming from the Salvation Army. It’s an average of 10 beds a day to assist people making the transition from being in jail to being free again. The programming there is life skills and substance abuse programming to try and deal with people’s problems.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Supplementary To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m just wondering, the Minister didn’t mention whether or not there’s any dialogue that happens between his department, the Department of Justice, and Health and Social Services, in terms of trying to find out why inmates are in jail and what we can do as a government to try to keep them out of there. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I said, we’re trying to use more and more of a case management approach. It’s taking some time to get that worked around, but, yes, the Department of Health and Social Services and Education, Culture and Employment are brought into the counselling as necessary. If you have somebody who’s dealing with an individual to try and find where their challenges are, then other resources can be brought to the table as necessary. As I said, we’re in the early stages of this, but that’s the goal with this programming is to try and improve the availability of counselling from all of our resources.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Supplementary To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If the Minister is mentioning the fact that there’s counselling that’s taking place now between staff and inmates and they’re trying to find out problems and why the inmates are in prison, maybe the Minister could give us some type of idea of what the numbers are. North Slave Correctional Centre, for example, of inmates that are in there because of addictions problems. If this work is being done, the Minister should know that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can’t say how many are in any facility because of addictions problems. I can say that the vast majority of inmates in the Northwest Territories were under the influence of alcohol when the crime was committed. So that alcohol is still the biggest problem that we face. That would tend to indicate that might be the area where addictions would be the biggest issue. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Dent. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Supplementary To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Given the fact that the inmates at North Slave Correctional Centre have come forward with a petition identifying the need for addiction treatment centres, I’m wondering if the Minister can give us some kind of indication today whether or not he’ll look at a survey or a study of the inmate population here in the Northwest Territories that we can look at trying to find out why they’re in prison, finding common themes and asking them what we might be able to do as a government to help keep them out of jail. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 578-15(3): Factors Of Incarceration

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Keeping people from coming back to jail is one of the major focuses of the corrections department. Yes, we will work with inmates. I think it’s important to remember that right now Nats’ Ejee K’eh is one of the resources that is also used, as is the Salvation Army. We do have residential programs available. We’re going to have to take a look at a petition the Member says he’s going to table. We’ll have to have a look at that and try to figure out exactly what area the inmates feel that there is a shortage of space, because right now we’re not filling up Nats’ Ejee K’eh with inmates. I’m going to have to talk to the department to get a better handle on what it is that people are looking for.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Many times I’ve given good statements without asking any questions. I’m not going to let that happen today.

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I’d like to direct my questions to the Minister of RWED. Last week when I asked him a question he said he wasn’t entertaining the thought of moving any positions up to Inuvik. I’d like to ask him if he has shut the door completely.

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

Return To Question 579-15(3): Oil And Gas Positions For The Mackenzie Delta

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me first thank the Member for the statement that he made today in the House and past statements he’s made on this issue. I think it highlights the need and allows us to discuss the need for additional resources in terms of oil and gas readiness up and down the valley. I certainly won’t deny that there’s an immediate and urgent need in the Mackenzie Delta. Obviously the place for that most specifically would be in Inuvik, where it would be best suited. I certainly have committed to come forward with a strategy for resourcing oil and gas development. I’m looking to go to Cabinet very soon with a conceptual approach and then, subsequent to that, coming forward to the committee members to have a broader discussion around how we tackle this problem. I’m certainly looking forward to that dialogue and thank the Member for the encouragement in this area. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary To Question 579-15(3): Oil And Gas Positions For The Mackenzie Delta

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Minister for that. I don’t think it was additional resources we were looking for. We’re just asking if the Minister would consider transferring some of the positions. That way we’re not using any additional resources, we’ll just use what we already have. Will he look at that?