Mr. Speaker, my frustration is not directed at the Finance Minister, but the fact is this does not represent a unified voice of this Assembly. We hear how hard that this government wants to work together on a devolution agreement, bring everybody together, work together on the same page. Well, this bill seems to derail that. Again, I know it’s the Member of Parliament’s business to do what he feels fit, but you would think that the communications works… If you know something so important, why didn’t you tell this side of the House, because it makes everyone over here look bad that we don’t know what’s happening, and does the government support it? Mr. Speaker, has this Cabinet taken an official position on this particular case and why have they not spoken to the Members of this House such as Regular Members? Thank you.
We have taken an official position on this. We’ve indicated to the Member in writing that we are committed to the process that’s underway with the federal Department of Finance and the other two territories. It’s clear for us. Now, if the Members are suggesting somehow that we should be out doing some kind of legwork for the Member of Parliament, then we can have that discussion. We were clear that the issue was dealt with. The Member of Parliament has a track that he’s on but we’re not involved in that. We have a process with the federal government and the other two territories. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Your final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The fact is we have a lot of infrastructure issues and we could go on at length about highway needs, hydro needs. We could go on about a lot of things that are very important to the future of the Northwest Territories. Yes, the spirit and the intent may work to accomplish this, which I’m not against. The fact is it seems like there’s a huge gap in the communication, Mr. Speaker. Clearly, to the Minister of Finance, I think this should be a Finance Ministers’ discussion or Premier to Prime Minister discussion in Ottawa, but not an MP forcing this issue to be discussed.
Mr. Speaker, does the Minister of Finance see risk taken to our negotiations to this government trying to increase our borrowing limit to what’s considered a responsible level? Does he see that this is now going to cause problems? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, we have a clear process with the federal government that we, collectively, have agreed on, and we are confident that that will allow us to achieve the goals to look at our circumstances as it pertains to our borrowing limit, come up with a result, hopefully, in the next few months to resolve those issues for the three territories. I don’t know the exact timing and sequence of events for Private Member’s Bills, but what little I know tells me that you have almost as much of a chance of winning the lottery as you do getting a Private Member’s Bill through the House of Parliament in Ottawa. The Member of Parliament has chosen a course of action, trying to advance what he thinks are northern interests, but we have our process and we’ve taken our position and it’s clear. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Premier in terms of his meeting with the aboriginal leaders later on this afternoon or this evening in Edmonton. I want to ask the Premier in terms of his discussion and in light of any type of documentation or indication from the aboriginal governments, in terms of their support to sign on with the territorial government to begin the next steps in terms of this draft agreement-in-principle. Can the Premier inform the House and the people of the North in terms of what type of reaction he has from the aboriginal governments so far?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the process that has been laid out, the chief negotiator sent a letter to the aboriginal groups to seek their input and gave a response time of the 31st. We’ve been sticking to the process of waiting until they have had a chance to look at it and make response. We’ve started receiving those responses and looking at those areas where there seems to be movement to move forward, but there are issues and concerns raised. There are also some pretty straightforward comments that have been made publicly that they are not interested in sitting at that table. What the meeting is tonight is to see, in fact, where the regional leaders sit on this and to see if we can find a way forward together. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I was carbon copied a letter by the Sahtu Secretariat certainly indicating their position on the draft AIP. I want to ask the Premier, in terms of my regional position here from the leaders, the chiefs and the Metis presidents, in terms of the attitude or the position of the federal government and the territorial government on the government-to-government relationship, and they certainly didn’t feel that they were participating as much as they wanted to and several issues from the Sahtu were not left to be discussed and they certainly don’t feel that it can be discussed any further when they start, if they do start the next process for the AIP. Can the Premier indicate to me in the House as to how concerns like this that are in the Sahtu can be addressed so we can feel comfortable enough to put our hand to the pen to sign this deal?
Mr. Speaker, the process and the communications between the aboriginal groups and ourselves and aboriginal governments on what we need to do going forward and some of those concerns, we’ve been tracking those. Again, with respect to the process, I’d like to sit down with the aboriginal leaders and have the discussion specifically about the points they’ve raised. Some have put it quite publicly, their emotions, and, in fact, naming of negotiators to go forward with concerns about a process going forward. I hope that as we have our meeting this evening, that we will be able to put certain concerns to rest and address the other concerns as we go forward through final negotiations. That’s the hope and we’ll have to see where that goes. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I certainly hope that the Premier has much success in terms of the negotiations or discussions that are going to happen in Edmonton this evening. Certainly the issues of the Sahtu are very important to us, to a point where it stated clearly in my letter from our chairperson, carbon copied to me, that we are not prepared to advance the territorial agenda until some very basic concerns of the Sahtu are addressed. I would like to ask the Premier in terms of what type of indications that would weigh, I guess, in terms of this Cabinet decision to say, yes, these are the basic issues of the Sahtu that can be addressed in terms of our self-government negotiations in our communities that we feel that we are developing our own level of government, and certainly that weighs heavily on the minds of our leaders.
Mr. Speaker, I think the Member is probing to see if I will give him information as to what might become a response to a question, or an issue that may get raised this evening or as we go forward into making a decision on this AIP as the GNWT. The simple fact, again, of honouring the process, wanting to sit down with the regional leadership and hear from them directly on some of the major issues, what can we address through an AIP and what is more important, I guess, addressed through the self-government process. Again, the AIP is a devolution of authorities over public lands. It is Crown lands that remain being administered by the federal government at this time. That is where we are at this process. I, as I have committed to Members and have followed up regularly with updates, will continue to do that as we progress on this file. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of this whole draft AIP, it comes down to one issue. It comes down to trust with our aboriginal governments and this government here. So far we have not seen that in terms of how this process comes out to play in terms of we have to post this agreement on CBC for everybody to read. Mr. Speaker, our leaders here are saying that we need more than just having a government-to-government. We need a third government. I am not too sure when this decision was made to have a territorial government and federal government come to a deal and then turn around to say to the aboriginal governments, sign if you want or like this deal. We need to have a government-to-government relationship. That is a basic fundamental question. When was the decision made to have a government-to-government and not include the aboriginal governments on the same table with the negotiators? My negotiators are saying they were just standing by and watching the process happen.
Mr. Speaker, I think the Member, as well, has past experience in negotiations. As they go to an AIP, once the initialling happens, at that point, then, you have your technical briefings, have the discussion about what it means as you enter into then the final set of negotiations. We haven’t even entered in. We haven’t even initialled an agreement-in-principle. In fact, as I said earlier, aboriginal governments have been part of this negotiation, informing of this AIP, especially in the Chapter 6 portion of that. The decision made was expressed at a number of meetings by the federal negotiator in the position that has been taken that is put forward in the AIP process. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to follow up on my Member’s statement asking the honourable Premier and in his capacity as well as Aboriginal Affairs Minister. The Dehcho First Nations are really quite upset about the Order-in-Council by the federal government. I would like to ask at what stage was our government involved or notified of the decision to remove the subsurface rights aspect of the protection of the Edhezhie area, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This government has worked alongside of aboriginal groups when it comes to the Protected Areas Strategy, the interim measures agreements that are put in place and working towards bringing those to successful conclusion. It came as quite a surprise, a shock, that it was announced that the measures were being withdrawn and, in fact, it was shortly after that that the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger, was directed to write a letter to the Minister of INAC in the response and concern to extend that agreement so that it would remain in place. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the Dehcho First Nations felt that our government did not speak on behalf of the residents of our constituency and demanded that kind of action. Can the Minister provide me a copy of that letter? I would like to see the content, because that is something that is of benefit of all the people of the Northwest Territories, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, as soon as this news came out, we were on the situation and a letter was drafted and then sent in. We will be able to share that with Members. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the Dehcho First Nations are looking for that kind of action by our government to stand behind them on this one particular issue. It is a win-win situation, because all the stakeholders are looking for this type of action by our government. What can the Premier do? What other actions can he take in order to get the federal government to change their Order-in-Council? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I think this is a prime example of what happens when the authorities for decisions of land and environment and resources are made in other capitals across this country and being the capital of Canada. This is a prime example of what happens when you don’t have authority to make decisions. In fact, through this process for 12 years, the GNWT has been working alongside our aboriginal partners. In fact, it put resources on the table to help with these areas. Again, it came as quite a surprise to us that the announcement was made that they are withdrawing from them. The letter has gone in to ask them to extend it.
For going forward with this letter, like in many files, we write these letters. We make phone calls and we ask for meetings to urge a resolution in favour of people of the Northwest Territories, but then we are ultimately waiting for a decision to be made by the so-called other authority in this land. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Dehcho First Nations’ position is that they are looking for more leadership by our government. Is there more that they can do? I know that the Minister of ENR did send a letter, but can our government speak out loud, take a Cabinet position and advise Ottawa that the Edhezhie issue is important on behalf of the Government of the Northwest Territories and the people and the Dehcho people? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, as we heard the information, the letter went in is a Cabinet position, that in fact this agreement should have been extended as it was originally laid out as there was much work that was done and a number of these files are close to bringing to conclusion. We have taken a position on this. In fact, the opportunity is there. I don’t know if the grand chief of the Dehcho will be one of the partners at the table. I will happily talk to him about the process and the letter that has gone and carry that message forward as well. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I have a return to written question asked by Mr. Tom Beaulieu on October 15, 2010, regarding core need breakdown for housing.
Later today, at the appropriate time, I will table:
Senior Households in Core Need by Community, 2009
Core Need for Single Member Households (Less than 60 Years of Age), 2009
Core Need by Size of Household, 2009
With respect to the request for information on core need among couples, it should be noted that the questionnaire format used in the survey combined two and three-person households, therefore, it is not possible to distinguish couples and families.
The methodology used in the 2009 NWT Community Survey has been reviewed by CMHC and is viewed to be highly valid. However, as the survey utilized random sampling in larger communities, and given the small sample sizes in the smallest communities, data provided on seniors for certain communities should be used and interpreted with some caution given the sample variance. These communities are denoted with an asterisk in the document Senior Households in Core Need by Community, 2009.
The NWTHC continues to work with the Bureau of Statics and the Department of Executive to further refine our methodology for future collection of housing data in the Northwest Territories
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Item 11, replies to opening address. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to return to item 8 on the Order Paper.
---Unanimous consent granted
The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources. Yesterday the Minister came out with a Minister’s statement indicating, or outlining the caribou numbers in the Northwest Territories, and in those numbers there was an indication that the Bluenose caribou herd seems to be rebuilding a little bit, to the point where our number is at about 98,000 caribou. I’m sure the Minister won’t be surprised to hear that when I got to work this morning I had a number of e-mails from outfitters who indicated that there are at least three outfitting organizations located out of Yellowknife who primarily hunt the Bluenose caribou herd. So they’re wondering what processes are in place to talk about giving those outfitters some tags so that they can have a season for 2011. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Wek’eezhii Renewable Resources Board came out with their report and recommendations, which we’re responding to, and they were very clear in terms of what they’re recommending in terms of harvesting and who should harvest and how much should be harvested out of the Bathurst. They made a reference as well to the Bluenose-East. So the new numbers, I’m sure, will be considered by the Wek’eezhii Renewable Resources Board, but at this point, those recommendations are being reviewed and will be responded to by the territorial government, as well as the Tlicho Government, and we’ll have that done by December. So at this juncture, given the processes that we’re involved in and the authorities that are there with the Tlicho Government and their regulatory process, I anticipate this will take some time over the course of this winter.
I thank the Minister for that response. In light of these numbers that have now come out, I think some of these outfitters who can demonstrate that they primarily hunt the Bluenose... I mean, there’s certainly an opportunity here for discussion, and my question was more specific to what is the process that these outfitters who primarily hunt the Bluenose caribou, what’s the process that they can use to go back to the review board, the Wek’eezhii, to see if there are any opportunities for these particular outfitters to get some tags so that we can start to rebuild this industry, which, for all intents and purposes, is now currently dead. Thank you.
We have a process that has just barely run its course and we’re still in the process of reviewing the recommendations from the Wek’eezhii Renewable Resources Board. The new numbers will be revisited by the board as it’s being revisited by Environment and Natural Resources as well as the Tlicho Government. Whether it will have any impact on any recommendation changes, it’s too early to say. Thank you.
Given the numbers, there certainly appears to be an opportunity here to help this industry and I suppose I could ask the Minister for ITI, but since I’m asking the Minister for ENR I’m wondering if he could tell us if they’d be willing to provide some sort of support to the outfitters who are primarily hunting the Bluenose. This is a lot of money in the Northwest Territories that has disappeared and if these numbers are solid again, why would we not stand behind this industry or help them out?
I think it’s too early to say the worst is over. We have one herd that has shown something of a rebound. The other herds have plummeted and have bottomed out. Some big ones we’re still not sure what happened to them and we’re waiting to see what’s happened with the Porcupine. There has been some stabilization we think because of the measures that have been wisely taken by the co-management boards and the territorial government.
The issue of compensation has been, I believe, asked and answered a number of times by the Minister of ITI. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good response. I’m not sure it was a response to the question that I was asking. The outfitters primarily take very small numbers and they primarily take adult males, which has a smaller impact on the decline. So my question is: Given what the outfitters take, given the money that comes in, can we count on this Cabinet and this Minister to find a way to support this industry and if the Bluenose numbers are solid, as indicated yesterday, why would we not stand behind this industry? Thank you.
What we’re standing behind first and foremost, of course, is the protection of the caribou herds across the Northwest Territories and we’ve had to make very many difficult decisions as we’ve dealt with a significant, often precipitous decline of the herds. So there’s a process. It takes time, as the Member is well aware.
In this part of the country, the Wek’eezhii Board has a very clear, mandated role to play. There’s overlap into the Sahtu with the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board and the co-management boards as well as up into the Inuvialuit, there’s involvement by the Dehcho. Also the herd is used sometimes from the Northwest Territories Metis. So we have a very complex area and there’s been some very clear direction given through a process that has taken a significant amount of time to complete and we have to respond to that. Our current system is clear; the decisions have been made and if they’re going to be revisited, that’s a process that’s going to take some time, keeping in mind that the numbers are, for all intents and purposes, hot off the presses. Is it going to be an ongoing trend or is it just a blip up? I mean, we have to assess all those things before we make any changes and that would have to be done through the full process that we’re all a part of. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
