Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. As I stated earlier, my questions are to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs regarding loose dogs in the communities. It’s a common site in one of my communities at least, to see people carrying sticks. I myself have taken walks and you feel safer carrying a stick. At the local communities, some of them being small and remote, some of them are settlements, some of them are hamlets, some of them are band councils.
My question to the Minister is: What tools are available for remote communities to help manage dogs if they have issues in terms of loose dogs in their communities?
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A few years ago we strengthened the Dog Act so the communities have the legislative authority to deal with the dog situation in their community, and we also fund them through the O and M allocation to deal with that if they choose to.
Currently, the Minister has indicated the Dog Act was recently updated. What enforcement options exist within the Dog Act? For example, I think some communities, whether they’re settlements or maybe hamlets, they have perhaps at their leisure with the O and M dollars that MACA commits to hire a bylaw officer. What if some of those communities don’t have bylaw officers? What enforcement options exist within the Dog Act for those communities?
We’ve given them legislative authority to deal with this. If they have bylaw officers, they can empower them to deal with the dog situation. If they don’t have bylaw officers, they have the authority to appoint someone as dog officers and deal with the situation, and they are funded through the O and M funding to do so.
It seems, once again, we put great effort in updating legislation and regulations, but then we really leave it to the communities. The Dog Act is basically left for communities to enforce the dog control measures, so my question again to the Minister is: Does MACA offer any training or guidance to communities on dog control matters?
Through our School of Community Government we do offer some training; however, we offer some bylaw training, I believe. I am not sure if dogs specifically are on there. If not, I will find out and relay that information on to the Member.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Nadli.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think there could be a workable solution in terms of trying to bring MACA and communities together and try to take a constructive approach in terms of dealing with this matter that’s pretty common throughout the NWT.
Would MACA consider partnerships with veterinary schools to bring clinics to small communities in the NWT?
Part of MACA’s mandate now is to deal with the communities. We work with the communities. We leave all the decision-making up to the communities, which I believe is the way it should be, and it’s something that the communities have wanted for a long time and have grasped. They’ve taken that on and done an admirable job doing so.
If there’s a need in the community to bring some veterinarian in to work in the community, that again would be a decision. We’ll work with the community and help try and facilitate this.
At the end of the day, as I’ve said for the last five or six years, the ultimate decision is the community’s, as it should be.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The Member for Hay River North, Mr. Bouchard.
