Mr. Speaker, as I’ve highlighted, we have a really simple situation here. First of all, we have a money problem and a machine that could be making us a lot of money every year. We have a revenue problem; we’ve heard the Finance Minister speak to it many times. Why do you think we’re in the situation we are? It’s time to go back to start doing business properly and efficiently. I think if the Minister listens very carefully, we could probably solve this problem without trying to embarrass the government by getting on and doing business right.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to thank the Minister of Justice, Mr. Jackson Lafferty, and the RCMP staff for working with me and the Hamlet of Sachs Harbour to get the detachment opened up. The two members in the community now are there on duty as we speak and serving the people of Sachs. I welcome them to Nunakput. And, again, thank you to the Minister and the community of Sachs for not giving up on this issue. I would like to thank the mayor, Bob Eldridge, and Andy Carpenter Sr. for all the hard work they have done.
Item 5, reports of standing and special committees. Item 6, returns to oral questions. Item 7, recognition of visitors in the gallery, the Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
It’s my pleasure today to recognize our relatively newly elected mayor of Hay River, His Worship Marc Miltenberger.
I’d like to recognize a constituent and the president of the UNW, Todd Parsons.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to recognize Mr. Felix Lockhart, former member of Grandin, with whom many long years ago I attended school. As well, I’d like to take the opportunity to recognize my youngest brother in his official capacity as mayor of Hay River and, of course, welcome them both to the Assembly.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to recognize two fairly distinguished ladies in the gallery today: Lydia Bardak, whose official title is managing director of the John Howard Society and coordinator for Community Justice, Yellowknife, and also a city councillor for the City of Yellowknife; and Arlene Hache, who represents the Centre for Northern Families.
Mr. Speaker, I’d also like to recognize Lyda Fuller, executive director of the YWCA in Yellowknife.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to recognize Mr. Fernand Denault.
If we’ve missed anyone in the gallery today, welcome to the House. It’s always a pleasure to have an audience in here.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Premier in light of my Member’s statement.
Everybody realizes we have a major problem all around the world in regard to energy costs and problems with food shortages. As a government we realize that one of our biggest expenditures is dealing with generating power, heating our facilities and maintaining public infrastructure.
I’d like to ask the Premier: is this government tracking exactly where these increases are going and what the impact of this government’s going to be, knowing we have an area of about $45 million in forced growth already and we continue to see this trend? If anything, it continues to go up. It will have a major impact, especially in small, high-cost communities.
I’d like to ask the Premier: what is this government doing to consider looking at the problem we’re having, and more importantly, is there anything we can do to remedy the situation?
Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The Hon. Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are a number of initiatives we can undertake and are planning to undertake in the area of energy — the cost of energy and fuel costs in the Northwest Territories. We have some existing programs in place; for example, the Territorial Power Support Program. The Member is accurate when he talks about the increased costs. We have to keep growing that fund through our forced-growth initiatives. The price of oil going up as it is, as fast as it is, continues to have an impact on us. As we’re all aware, the Power Corporation has just got its last rate application approved. That hits on the pocketbooks of individuals.
So we’re going to have to make some changes in the way we do business. Some of it is long term, but, as well, we’ve established the Energy Coordinating Committee within Cabinet to look at a number of initiatives. One that you heard me talk about earlier is alternative energy sources, further development of our hydro potential. We’d be all blessed if we could have the hydro potential a number of communities in the southern part of our territory enjoy. We need to look at how we can expand that going north. In between that time is when we can get that underway.
We’d have to look at our existing frameworks. For example, right now we try to match the cost of power for the 700 kilowatt hours in Yellowknife for those that are higher priced than Yellowknife — dealing with that scenario. As well, we’re going to have to look at other forums. I believe as we get through the process, as we’re getting into in the budget, biomass options are another thing we have to look at as a government.
I’m talking about the communities who have high dependency on diesel fuel. It’s going to be several years before this government gets around to seeing any of the energy initiatives that can change that. Yet we’re stuck with a scenario where we have diesel generators, we have community rates that are very high, and we have the high cost to operate and maintain public infrastructure.
I’d like to ask the Minister if they are doing anything to look at diesel communities in light of energy prices and in light of the cost of diesel fuel to run our public infrastructures. Communities in the Delta were paying $1.61 per litre for diesel fuel. To fill up your fuel tank in your home and your house is $2,000. It is affecting the residents in the Inuvik region.
I’d like to ask the Minister if he is looking at the diesel communities in the Northwest Territories and planning a scenario to deal with that problem.
We are indeed looking at diesel communities and power production. The rate base right now.... Through the existing structure we deal with communities at a community rate–based structure scenario. I think we need to have that debate as Members of the Assembly.
For example, at the Association of Communities I spoke to the fact that how we treat the Power Corporation as the sole shareholder in the Northwest Territories has to be reviewed in the sense of.... Right now we match everybody, as I said earlier, to the 700 kilowatt hours, but after that you pay a community rate base. Some communities have a very high cost. Here’s an opportunity we need to look at. For example, after 700 kilowatt hours, should there be a unified rate across the Territories, treating it as a territorial piece of infrastructure and not as a community piece of infrastructure? Those scenarios need to be looked at, and that Energy Coordinating Committee will be looking at those types of options.
I also touched on the other element: dealing with being able to look at the cost of food. It is going up. We do have a major cost for transportation — goods and services into communities by air, by road. Again, those costs are passed on to the consumers.
I’d like to ask the Minister how we’re going to look at the food prices as part of this review in light of your energy costs, and also the costs in regard to consumption. I talked to the mayor of Paulatuk, who told me that a case of 12 cans of pop is $60. You look at milk in Tuktoyaktuk; for 2 litres it’s $10. And those costs are going to go up.
So I’d like to know if you are also looking at the food-consumption costs in those communities and if there are ways we can work around that.
Through the Reducing the Cost of Living initiative we’ve discussed as Members of the Assembly — and Ms. Lee will be the lead on that file — we’re looking at a number of factors. Other things we’ve heard of, for example, are directives that are supposed to help the high-cost communities with a Food Mail Program that is there by the federal government. We need to look at that to see how it’s working. I’ve heard from a number of people and businesses who say it’s not working as it was designed to. We need to look at that to see if there’s a real, true impact on communities. It’s supposed to help that transportation fee the Member is talking about.
Some of our other programs we talked about -- the Income Support Program.... The food baskets in those communities at a high cost are adjusted for those communities. That continues to be something we look at as part of the forced growth. For people who aren’t on income support or don’t have the need for it, the direct impact on them is another thing we’re going to have to look at. Some of our initiatives, the big ones, are the cost of energy and transportation. You’ll see we’re proposing some investment in those areas to help try to reduce the cost. For example, some of the Transport Canada regulations on airports reducing the size of planes going into those communities could have a further negative impact. We’re trying to address those as we go forward.
I’d like to ask the Premier: how soon is the committee that he mentioned going to be able to meet with Regular Members and ensure that Regular Members have input into this process, realizing that this is probably one of the biggest issues we’ll deal with during the term of the 16th Assembly? That is, just dealing with the outside pressures to sustain our communities in the Northwest Territories.
One thing I’ve said to all the Ministers who have lead roles on these initiatives is to make contact with standing committees to set up some times to do the presentations and briefings of information we have so we can get some feedback and further work on a number of scenarios. That’s going to be something we’ll need to work out between committees and Cabinet as well.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member from Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Mr. Speaker, my question today will be to the Minister of Transportation, and it refers back to my Member’s statement regarding the airport issue and parking.
It may sound like a silly issue to raise, but this has been a problem over a long time. The fact is that we’re losing probably hundreds of thousands of dollars out there because no one’s charging for any parking whatsoever. That’s the fact. On the one hand, we have budget cuts because we can’t seem to raise enough money. We have to find ways. Yet on the other hand, we’re wasting or foregoing potential revenue that could be going somewhere useful.
My question to the Minister of Transportation is: will he heed my consideration by following up on it and getting rid of this silly machine and use a clipboard and a pencil and a double-check a couple of times a day to manage the parking out there properly and collect revenues? That is really the issue.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Yakeleya.
I thank the Member for his interest in improving transportation services across the Northwest Territories, especially with improving services at the airport, such as the territorial airport in Yellowknife. This includes the parking services. Over the years several different types of machinery operations and management systems have been placed at the Yellowknife airport and tested. Increased travel has caused us some difficulties in terms of finding a workable solution. I’d be happy to have some discussions with my colleagues and the Member as soon as possible to rectify this issue.
Mr. Speaker, my suggestion is maybe getting security out there to do a check maybe two, three times a day and maybe at the end of the day, because if you didn’t pay or get on the list, you don’t need to be out there.
Would the Minister take that into consideration? And can he give me some type of time frame as to when he thinks he can look into this and maybe report back to the House on any potential results?
As you informed the House, an RFP was issued out to the public. We’re happy to announce that Trafco, the contractor, has been awarded the contract. They’re working on it right now as we talk in terms of installing a new system for parking fees up at the Yellowknife Airport. I’m hoping that this new parking management system.... We expect it to be running this summer.
As we continue on with this project, I’ll be happy to inform the Members in the House in terms of when this system will be in operation for the public to start paying their parking fees at the Yellowknife Airport.
I was going to leave it at that, but the Minister couldn’t help but tease me with a new parking-management system that’s coming forward. So maybe we should get some enlightenment as to that. What does the Minister mean by that? Does he mean maybe the pencil, paper and clipboard technology I was suggesting, or is he going to spend another $20,000, $30,000, $40,000, $50,000 on a potential machine that we have no guarantee will work out there?
When we put in our operation system, the number of years we tested it — the old system.... Now we’re confident we have a new system that will be installed, that will be tested and that will ensure the public will be quite satisfied in terms of ensuring our revenues collected at the Yellowknife Airport will be satisfactory to the department. I will keep the Members informed and the House also informed as to the operation of the new system.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
It’s a follow-up on my Member’s statement with regard to the conditions on Highway No. 7.
I’d just like to ask the Minister of Transportation: with regard to emergency deterioration of highways, what exactly classifies for emergency roadwork on our highway systems? Is it something like the sinkhole on Highway No. 5 or situations such as this on Highway No. 7, where the base has completely eroded and it’s actually just a strip of mud there? Exactly what would be considered for emergency funding?
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Yakeleya.
Mr. Speaker, I’d like to thank the Member for his question on the highway emergency stoppage of our roads. Highway transportation, from our department and officials.... The safety of the travelling public is number one. When we deem there are safety issues that jeopardize the lives of people who travel on the highway, we will take great measures to close the highway, to fix it up, and to ensure those safety measures are in place on the highway and, when the highways are opened, that the public is aware of the safety measures in place for their own safety.
With the thawing out in the spring and the amount of water in some of those sections of highway, we take extra precautions in terms of safety for our travelling public. This Highway No. 7 right now is closed for safety reasons.
Absolutely. As I said in my Member’s statement, it’s regretful that the highway has to close, because the conditions are impossible. It has actually happened on the long weekend as well, Mr. Speaker. Constituents and the travelling public contacted my office. They’re saying that there’s no signage there; what’s going on? Why are people getting stuck in that highway? And why wasn’t it closed earlier? I’m not too sure why they didn’t close it any earlier there. But like I said, regretfully, they’ve closed it now.
Now that the condition exists, that they’ve recognized it, I’d like to know what the plans would be to repair it and not just to allow it to dry up and blade it over.
Mr. Speaker, our department is working very closely with the contractor who takes care of Highway No. 7 — parts of the highway. We are working closely with the community; we are working closely with the contractors and thus would look at some of the plans to open that highway as quickly as possible. We are looking at the situation.
The weather is not on our side at this time, in terms of the type of weather we have to operate in; however, I will keep the Member informed in terms of how soon we could make it passable for people in the Nahendeh riding to drive over. Also, we ask the public to contact the regional office through our telephone system to have some warning of the conditions of the roads at this time in the Northwest Territories.
Absolutely, getting the highway back up and running for the travelling public.... A lot of people do travel to Fort Liard and Fort Simpson as well as head over to Providence and Yellowknife, Mr. Speaker. We’re on the edge of the tourism season, as well.
But my question again, Mr. Speaker, is that these sections obviously need rebasing and to be re-strengthened. I’d like to know: will the department declare this an emergency and provide the necessary funding to repair the road up to acceptable highway standards? Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, I said before that the department is working closely with the contractor for that section of road. We do have resources there; we are looking at the situation. I’m waiting for the report from my officials to see the type of assessment and analysis and recommendations they would consider for this road. My understanding is that they are working on it as quickly as possible. At this time I would wait to give further direction as to what the Member’s asking for, in terms of emergency funding for that specific section of the road.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Getting it back up and running up to acceptable standards is key and paramount to me and to my constituents. I just want to reiterate, Mr. Speaker, and get some type of commitment from the Minister that these sections will be declared emergency road repairs and that they’ll provide the necessary resources to rebase so — I don’t want to say “washouts,” because actually the road turned into mud is what happened — this won’t happen in the future. Because it’s been happening for many, many years now.
As you know, these roads in the Northwest Territories are very challenging to the department. We have special, unique, harsh climates to worry about in terms of how our roads are put together. That’s why this department is investing strongly in our roads, as the Premier’s indicated in his budget speech, with strong investment to all the region.
You know, Mr. Speaker, that Nahendeh in the last year, 2007–2008, had the highest percentage of investment as a constituency in transportation areas. So we will continue working on the system infrastructure. Once we know that, we will put our initiative toward opening up the roads for the people of Nahendeh and Liard who use that road. The priority in our government is safety, and we want to make sure that safety of all the travelling public is foremost with all our officials working in the department.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
Mr. Speaker, my question today is for the Premier. It’s in regard to the budget process that has been followed to date.
Mr. Speaker, like all of us in this Chamber, I make decisions for a living. In order to make sound decisions — decisions that affect the people in our communities, our families and the opportunities that are out there — we need to have a solid base, a foundation of information, in order to build these decisions and make these decisions on. Throughout this budget process I have been surprised at the lack of detailed, solid analysis that has been done by the government that would lead them to make some of the decisions in reductions they have made.
Mr. Speaker, the first question I have for the Premier is.... I’d like to know exactly what the decision-making process was when it came to making reductions. What analysis did the government go out and do prior to making decisions on what would be reduced? I’m talking specifically about jobs and the reduction in jobs.
The Hon. Premier, Mr. Roland.
Mr. Speaker, I’m well aware the Member has serious concerns with process — that’s for the record. I’ve heard him a number of times saying that this government has done things differently from what was done in the past. I’ve been a Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories for 12 years — as a Regular Member, as a Minister and in this present position. Our process we followed to build the budget has been the same process followed by other governments when it’s come about after an election year.
The thing we did differently this time is that we didn’t wait a whole year to try to have an impact on where we’d go as a Legislative Assembly. Members, when the work’s been done by a previous government — pulling information together about forced growth, some new initiatives on that basis of the capital infrastructure plan — it sits there until the new Members become available.
In a typical year, Mr. Speaker, if we decided to try to meet our original timeline of having a whole budget in place by April 1, we would in fact just tinker with the existing work and basically bring in a budget that had lots of work done by a previous Assembly. This government has changed that. That’s why we put in an interim appropriation, status quo budget, no growth, no reduction, until this document comes forward. So that process, that interaction between the government and Regular Members, hasn’t changed.
In fact, I recommended a potential change that didn’t get accepted. So I find it a little surprising to be pushed back, in the sense of saying this government is not doing, and has in fact let down, the process we have in place. The fact is, we’ve looked at our initiatives; we’ve looked at the growth rate; we looked at our revenue sources coming forward. We know we can’t continue at the existing pace, so we set a target of $135 million for reduction and reinvestment. That work is still going on. As you see, we’ve not met the targets, and we’re going to have to look at how we can do that.
Mr. Speaker, I guess I challenge the Premier on the fact that he says that Regular Members were included in this process. I was here the seven months since the government came into power. To be honest with you, I don’t see that conclusion that the Premier speaks about. I don’t know where....
Maybe this is the question I’ll ask the Premier. Mr. Premier, where were Regular Members when Cabinet decided where to spend the millions of dollars in strategic initiatives? How were we included in that decision?
