Debates of May 17, 2007 (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s good to know they only need this one piece of information left, but I have to remind the Minister, when you are trying to get all these community organizations to come together to support something that seems like a good initiative for the community, it’s always really difficult when you are talking about dollar allocations within the community. To go out there and start negotiating another round of negotiations and agreements with all these local organizations by the seniors' society, that just really puts a lot of strain on what they have already done. Can his department provide some support to the seniors' society in expediting the whole process and getting in touch with the Metis and saying we are just waiting for you guys, are you onside, is it a go? Can they do that for the seniors? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 105-15(6): Housing Complex For Deninu Kue Seniors

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There have been discussions. The Metis have told us they are meeting on the 24th, which is a week from today. They will give us that assurance.

Mr. Speaker, what we are trying to avoid is a situation we see in some communities where we have a seniors complex, it’s only for seniors, and then we have empty units and then people looking for housing and they can’t move into it because it’s a seniors complex. We want to say let’s be sensible about this, let’s build it as a seniors unit, but if there are other people, make sure they can move in there too with priority given to the seniors.

Mr. Speaker, I will assure the Member that we expect to have a decision on the 24th. If there seems to be a problem with that, we will intervene and urge the Metis council to move this quickly. That’s the only piece of information we need. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in my statement today, I spoke about the issue of recreational land availability around Yellowknife, in particular the Ingraham Trail. The issue, as I see it, needs to move forward and it’s an important issue. I would like to direct my questions to the Premier because it involves multi levels of government.

Mr. Speaker, is the Premier aware of any interim agreement or negotiations going on between DIAND, the Akaitcho, the GNWT to resolve the issue of squatters in and around Yellowknife because there is little enforcement and, further, is there any commitment he can make today to ensure that a process starts to engage the stakeholders with this problem? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can’t speak for DIAND, for the federal government, but from our government’s perspective, in 2004 we tried to come to an agreement with the Akaitcho at the negotiating table to have a policy that deals with unauthorized use of land. Mr. Speaker, at that time, the proposal we put forward was rejected and we have not taken it back to the table again.

Mr. Speaker, in the meantime, through Municipal and Community Affairs, we continue to work towards a policy for use of land and, as Members may have noticed, there have been ads in the papers this week warning people are they breaking the law. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I see this issue clearly around the word respect. This is respect for First Nations land. This is respect for our environment. This is respect about the law. So if we don’t deal with the trespassers, it’s a serious issue. I have spoken to one of the local chiefs and he’s concerned. I have spoken to some of the DIAND folks here and they are concerned. Would the Premier be willing to initiate this, I think he called it a tabled situation. I’m sorry; I missed how he said it. Anyway, would he be willing to reinitiate this process to get this discussion out there with the stakeholders so we can deal with it? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was referring to trying to work with the Akaitcho negotiators, Akaitcho people, at the negotiation table. We tried that in 2004. It didn’t go anywhere. So, Mr. Speaker, I am certainly open to having our negotiator consider raising this again when there is next a meeting at the table.

Mr. Speaker, beyond that, what we are prepared to do right now is put out enforcement procedures that we have worked out, give people warnings and give people notice that they have to show us that they have the right to be occupying the land they have. If they don’t, then they are violating the law and will be dealt with accordingly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Premier further outlining this process, but I would like to encourage him to not wait until the next table. We can probably deal with this as a side table issue because we have cottage country within reach of Yellowknife that we could get lawful people out there enjoying summer, enjoying winter, whatever the case may be. Mr. Speaker, can the Premier explain what enforcement means, because he just hinted that there would be some enforcement, and how will it be monitored. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Members have noticed, we have put out notices in the newspapers. It’s also on the community channel, on the green...(inaudible)…we want people to know that if they are building something or they have something out there, they are going to have to show us that they have the right to be there. Mr. Speaker, we have started that.

Mr. Speaker, we will be posting notices on property where we are not able to identify someone with a lease or a title. We have to follow a process in there giving proper notice. Of course, it varies whether we find out who the owner or the occupant is. We will follow through with that. Where it is abandoned, again there is a process we have to follow to deal with structures that have been abandoned and there is need for clean up of those. Mr. Speaker, I won’t go into all the steps, but there is a procedure laid out that is very clear and we have developed that in cooperation with the Department of Justice.

Mr. Speaker, let me just say in closing, that we do want and hope to have the cooperation of the Akaitcho people as well as we begin the procedures of managing this. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Supplementary To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, just for clarity here, I am going to go back, although I have asked for it, I just want to be sure that we are on the same page. Would the Premier be willing to go out and speak to the Akaitcho folks and even place a phone call to the DIAND folks who are in charge of this area and strike up this meeting? The talks I have had with these individuals, they are ready and very interested in dealing with this problem. Would the Premier agree to do that today? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 106-15(6): Recreational Land Availability Around Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t know if I will have a chance to do it today…

---Laughter

…but, Mr. Speaker, I will and we have committed to consulting with the Akaitcho and letting them know what we are doing in terms of the enforcement procedures. Hopefully we will have cooperation there.

Mr. Speaker, I also hope that DIAND will also follow a similar process as we are on their land because, Members know, we can only develop procedures and apply our legislation on Commissioner’s land. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, my questions this afternoon are for Mr. Dent, the Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities. Mr. Speaker, it’s long been recognized that our disabilities and income support policies can prevent some significant barriers to families wishing to care for long-term disabled family members in their homes. We have had two initiatives underway for quite some time; several years, Mr. Speaker. These include the disabilities framework and the government-wide income security reform review. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister advise whether either of these initiatives will address the barriers that exist in our policies to providing and assisting families with long-term care for disabled members in their homes? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Honourable Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities, Mr. Dent.

Return To Question 107-15(6): Support Systems For Persons With Disabilities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. By September of this year, the Income Support Program will be changed to provide a better level of support for persons with disabilities. We are also looking at changes that will accommodate some of the issue that the Member has talked about in terms of long-term planning for families who have youngsters with disabilities in a similar vein to the approach taken by the federal government recently. So, yes, Mr. Speaker, that’s underway. I am hoping in June to be able to announce the specifics of some of the changes we hope to implement in September.

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

Supplementary To Question 107-15(6): Support Systems For Persons With Disabilities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That’s very good news and I know a lot of families will be looking forward to hearing about this next month. Mr. Speaker, the Minister mentioned children and perhaps I missed something in his reply but I would like to confirm, are we also going to be acknowledging or accommodating adults, Mr. Speaker, who can sometimes find themselves in situations where they are perhaps as helpless as children but still warrant and can be provided the support of families? Will we be acknowledging the situations for disabled adults, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 107-15(6): Support Systems For Persons With Disabilities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are planning to change the focus of the Income Support Program from one of a program of last resort, to one that looks at what are the needs of an individual and a person who is disabled needs an ability to participate in society. They have different needs than somebody who is able bodied and perhaps just in between jobs. So the focus of the program is going to be significantly different. I believe we will be able to significantly improve on the supports that we are providing. Thank you.

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

Supplementary To Question 107-15(6): Support Systems For Persons With Disabilities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will these reforms enable families who are able to tap into our support system and provide that kind of long-term support in their homes as opposed to having to look perhaps only at institutions as their only real options? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Dent.

Further Return To Question 107-15(6): Support Systems For Persons With Disabilities

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the big changes we are proposing with the Income Security Program is a focus on bringing more than one department together to work with individuals; case management, if you will. Some of the level of support that might be required by some of the individuals in our system wouldn’t necessarily be available through one department. They may not all be available to changes through the Income security Program, but perhaps by case management working with Health and Social Services and the Income Support Program and the Housing Corporation, we may be able to find ways to more adequately deal with people who up until now have been slipping through the cracks. That’s the overall goal of the change that we are proposing to bring forward in September.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are addressed to the Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation and it’s with regard to the current practice of the Housing Corporation when it comes to having new houses built in communities where they’ve moved over to what they call commodity packaging and it has to be for all the communities on the road system. If you want to bid, you have to bid on all the windows for the houses in all the communities or the doors or the framing as opposed to supply and build in the community. In my community of Fort Smith, it puts the local building supplier at a distinct disadvantage in competing against the large companies like Igloo which now has its main plant and factory in Edmonton. I just wanted to ask the Premier, is there any flexibility or ways that there will be a more level playing field as it was in the old days, even when it was supply and erect? The building supplier had access to bidding through the local contractors. In this case, they are cut out of the opportunity because they are not big enough to compete. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Honourable Minister responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 108-15(6): Contracts For Housing Construction Materials

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Housing Corporation, over the years, has gone to great expense to try to deliver the housing in a way that is affordable, but is also done so that northern businesses have maximum opportunity to benefit from it. That’s why in some cases we do the supply, ship and erect where it’s all to one person. In some cases, it’s labour only and we supply the material and in other cases, it’s a combination of those.

Mr. Speaker, I am open to looking at how we do this in a way that is going to meet those smaller companies the Member is referring to that can’t compete with the big companies yet want to benefit from this and do it in a way that keeps the price affordable. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Miltenberger.

Supplementary To Question 108-15(6): Contracts For Housing Construction Materials

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, could the Premier indicate how he would see or be able to deal with this circumstance? Would it be a case of the building supply owner to contact the president or what would the Premier suggest? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 108-15(6): Contracts For Housing Construction Materials

Mr. Speaker, I haven’t had the opportunity to discuss this at any great extent yet with the president, but I will. I would certainly encourage the company involved to talk to the president and see if there is another creative way of doing this. It may be that there are enough units, for example, in a community that we could look at a different way of doing it where a local established business would be able to put in a reasonable price. Mr. Speaker, I would commit to speaking with the president and ask the company concerned to also do the same. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the project of the magnitude of the Mackenzie Valley pipeline continues to be a topic. Now I hear that there is a meeting going on in Ottawa. I would like to direct my questions today to Premier Handley. I would like to ask the Premier if he or the government was aware that this meeting was going on in Ottawa between the proponents and the Government of Canada. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 109-15(6): Role Of GNWT In Mackenzie Gas Pipeline Projects

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me say we have gone, again, a long way to saying to the federal government and the proponent that we want to be in the room when there are discussions going on, the results of which we may inherit at some point. Mr. Speaker, we were not aware that this meeting was happening, although we knew generally that these kind of discussions would be taking place at some time in the future. But in reference to the meeting that took place, we did not know of that specific meeting, Mr. Speaker. That is of concern to us.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary To Question 109-15(6): Role Of GNWT In Mackenzie Gas Pipeline Projects

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Premier for that. I hope it doesn’t go to show the importance Ottawa places on our government or lack of it. I would like to ask the Premier if he’s communicated to them his disappointment that we are not in the room at the meeting. On something that is so important to the Northwest Territories, we have to be there. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 109-15(6): Role Of GNWT In Mackenzie Gas Pipeline Projects

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our officials have insisted we be there. This one happened, we didn’t know and, as I say, that is of great concern to us. Assuming we have devolution and resource revenue sharing at some point, this is a concern to the people of the North.

Mr. Speaker, in answer to the question, yes, either I will or the Minister of Finance will again say to Ottawa that you can’t just give us lip service on this, you have to follow through and let us know these meetings are there. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary To Question 109-15(6): Role Of GNWT In Mackenzie Gas Pipeline Projects

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the meeting, my understanding, is on Ottawa being offered equity into the project. I would like to ask the Premier if this government would be able to, if offered, take an equity share in the pipeline. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Mr. Handley.

Further Return To Question 109-15(6): Role Of GNWT In Mackenzie Gas Pipeline Projects