Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I spoke today about priorities for the next capital infrastructure budget and the 2011-2012 budget. I know it is a long ways away, but I think it is time we start considering priorities of the government. I suggested that providing cell service in the 25 communities that don’t currently have it should be one of the priorities of this government. My questions are addressed to the Minister of Finance. I would like to ask the Minister where the provision of cell phone service to all communities in the NWT sits in terms of this government’s priorities. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Members have copies of the five-year capital plan and going forward. Cell phone service is not on the list that I am aware of. What was once a luxury is now considered an essential service, but it’s not there.
I will also point out that we have also been told at different tables, look after your costs, control your growth, don’t grow government and don’t go too much into debt in this Legislature. Now we are told 911, cell phone service, we want more houses, roads and bridges and all good things, recognizing that there is a limited amount of resources and a far greater list of needs than we will ever be able to afford. The debate is what is it going to replace. Thank you.
I thank the Minister for his answer. I can’t argue that we have set a capital plan out. However, I can argue that these plans are not set in stone. I don’t think they should be considered firm and concrete from day one when we first establish these plans. In a four-year period of our election, we have to be able to respond to the various concerns of our constituents, and not just my constituents but across the Territory. I would like to suggest that, certainly, priorities can change. I think they do change. I have seen that already in two years.
I would like to know from the Minister whether or not…I mentioned a number of possible funding scenarios in my statement. There are any number of different ways that we can fund this particular project and one or more of them may not cost us the full cost, maybe not even 25 percent of the cost. Has the government, has the Minister or his Department of Finance ever looked at how provision of cell phone service in these 25 communities might be funded? Thank you.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. Work was done looking at that. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Minister. How? What sort of options did you come forward with? Could you please explain to me what considerations were taken, what options were considered and what the decision was? Thank you.
There are two fundamental approaches. There’s one where cell phone provision is seen as a business opportunity where the private sector will go in because there’s money to be made. The other approach, similar to the Yukon one, is where the government agrees they’re going to come up with a significant amount of money, because they want to have cell phone service across their whole jurisdiction similar to the Yukon which, I might point out, has far less geographic challenges than the Northwest Territories does in terms of distances to cover. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Your final supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I agree that the Yukon is not the NWT. We certainly have different geography, but the information I’ve been given from a technical perspective is that really all we need is a cell phone tower in every community. So that’s 25 towers. We certainly don’t need to have towers in between every one of our communities.
My last question for the Minister -- hopefully, he can give me an answer that I will like, I guess -- but what will it take for this government, this Cabinet, to make cell phone service provision in providing cell phone service in all of our communities a priority? Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A little over two years and I’m still trying to give the Member an answer that she likes, depending on the circumstance. The Member is very well aware we have a capital planning process. It’s intensely participated in. There’s huge interest given now coming forward that after the two years of stimulus money, that the capital plan is not going to be as big as it has been over the last two years. So the challenge for us as a Legislature is to look at the priorities on that list and if we want to replace something, what is that? If we are going to collectively decide we want to spend more money than we have already and run a greater debt than we are currently contemplating, those are the kinds of discussions we have to have and it’s about making choices. It’s not just, I would suggest, the government, this Cabinet that’s going to make that decision in isolation. The Member well knows that if Cabinet comes forward and tries to insert something into the capital plan, should they ever be so foolhardy, we’d be dealt with in short shrift by this Legislature. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
