Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Hawkins brought up earlier about the department of motor vehicles and I particularly like the Food Network and it makes the wait feel less long. The people at DMV are great, once you get to work with them.
I have a constituent concern that came forward to me about a son of a constituent who was told that there was a three-month waiting list to get their road test. This was confirmed by the office of the Department of Transportation. The unfortunate thing is that not everyone passes their first road test. So in this situation here, we may have people in Yellowknife here and the surrounding area that use our services here for motor vehicles, that it could be up to a six-month waiting list to get a driver’s licence. I think this is something that doesn’t make a lot of sense.
My question for the Minister of Transportation is: Why is this happening in Yellowknife motor vehicles office?
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. David Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know there are wait times. The department has been looking at a way to address this.
About 60 percent of all drivers’ examinations in the Northwest Territories are done in Yellowknife and that was by one driver examiner. Recently, the department has centralized the management structure of the transport compliance section and moved the driver examination program to that area. This has given the department some additional flexibility to deal with the significant demand that we’ve seen in that area.
Staff are working on a plan right now to reduce the waiting times in Yellowknife by training and utilizing highway transport officers to enhance that program, especially during vacations and other issues that may arise. I thank the Member for bringing up that concern.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. I’d like to remind our visitors in the gallery to shut the ringers off on your cell phones. Mr. Dolynny, oral questions.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister for replying. It sounds like there are some measures that are going to be coming forward to decrease these wait times in Yellowknife.
How are these measures going to be monitored so that we know, as Members, that constituents’ needs are being addressed here for Yellowknife?
We’ve recognized that; the department’s recognized that. As I’ve mentioned earlier, we’re taking steps to address that.
In terms of monitoring, I’m an MLA, I’ve got constituents, as well, and the Member’s got constituents and we hear from our constituents whether or not the level of services is up to par. If it’s taking longer than three months to receive a driver’s licence, we’re going to hear about it.
Certainly, we’re paying attention to the issue and we’re taking steps so that the wait times aren’t what they’ve been in the past and they will improve.
I do appreciate the Minister’s response, I just don’t like using constituents as a means for a testing ground for inadequacies in our programs. I’m hoping the department has their own measures placed inside. Which leads me to another question.
We don’t talk about employment. Sometimes driver’s licences are required for employment. Employers who desperately need drivers sometimes are now in the same boat, where they’ve got to wait three months, potentially, for drivers to come on board for employment.
What is the department doing to address the employment component of employees and employers having to wait now for these three months? Will these measures address this sector?
Certainly, the department’s heard the concerns and we are going to address those concerns. Especially when it’s a time sensitive thing and it deals with employment, I mean, that’s why we need to ensure that the wait times aren’t what they’ve been.
We are, again, certainly taking the steps to ensure that we are going to improve the wait times when it comes to receiving a driver’s licence and getting the driver examination here in Yellowknife.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final supplementary, Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Of course, we are talking today about issues in the Yellowknife DMV office and there could be potential issues throughout the territory.
Would the Minister come forward to the House and maybe provide a comprehensive review of our services in comparison to what you would expect across Canada? Would the Minister provide that for Regular Members as an overall review?
I could commit to providing Members with that information. In some of the other communities in the Northwest Territories, the wait times aren’t what we see here, in Yellowknife. Some of the statistics that I have and have provided to the Member, would indicate that they’re not near what they are in Yellowknife. Once we get the information and compile it, we’ll share it with the Members.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement today I talked about asking the Department of Transportation to move what I would define as simple or regular services to on-line, and certainly give our consumers or constituencies opportunity to do that. If you live in Liard or maybe in another type of small community like that, you have to go to Fort Simpson to do your licence plate renewal for your vehicle. That’s something you could do on-line. If you’re busy in Yellowknife and you don’t have an hour to go sit down just for a quick renewal, you could process it on-line.
My question is such: What’s holding the Department of Transportation from moving forward on an on-line service option that would help our citizens or constituents to do business a little better and more efficiently?
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. David Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We will look at this. It’s an issue and I appreciate the Member bringing it up here in the House today. It’s certainly an issue that the department takes seriously and if there’s a way that we can provide services better to the public, that’s something that we’re interested in doing. If it’s on-line, that is something that we will look at.
I appreciate the answer from the Minister. In Saskatchewan, to name one, Ontario, to name two, and there are several others, they’re quite aggressive and provide kiosks and public advertisements all over the place saying you could do this type of service.
Quite frankly, what does “we’ll look at it” mean? The general public hears that answer almost the same as maybe yes, maybe no. It doesn’t really have an answer. What does his answer mean by “we’ll look at it”?
Again I thank the Member for bringing up the question of on-line services provided by DOT. I’m not sure if I wasn’t clear enough, but the answer was yes, we will look at it and we will provide Members with an update as we move forward with plans to provide on-line services.
Quite simply the question really is built around the factors are we going to look at it and see if we can do something this year, is it something that’s on the wish list that someday we’ll talk about it. That’s the type of answer I’m looking for, because constituents are following our proceedings on-line or ask us in person and will want to know what does “we’ll look at it” mean. We need something a little more specific.
I committed to the House and to the Member that we will entertain on-line services by the Department of Transportation, and as to a timeline, I will get back to the Member and to the other Members with a timeline on how we’re going to do that.
There is some work that has to be done and we will get to doing that work. I can assure the House that the work will begin and we’ll hopefully have an answer for the Member on an implementation date sooner rather than later. I’d just be guessing here today and I don’t want to do that.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
No, thank you.
The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier this morning I gave an overview in terms of just the initiative on the proposed Wildlife Act changes. My question for follow up is for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources.
Can the Minister comment in terms of the update of the progress of the proposed changes to the Wildlife Act?
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The honourable Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is a major gathering planned for the early part of November where the working group members are going to come into town, and hopefully the Aboriginal leaders, to have a discussion amongst themselves, and then with ourselves and myself as Minister and the department officials, to look at the issue of the conferences the Member talked about. We’re hoping, at that point, to come to consensus on the way forward.
We’ve been working, as well, with the stakeholders, the Wildlife Act advisory group, and the feedback they’ve provided us, and we want to be able to respond to the SWAAG, as well, on a go-forward basis. The intent now is to be able to conclude the work and be able to come forward in February to introduce this bill. Thank you.
Can the Minister comment on the outcomes of public consultations that were held last spring and summer?
The consultation feedback has gone well. The bill has been reviewed and the bill was substantially the same as what was before the House in the last Assembly. The issues that have come up, there have been some technical issues, there have been some issues of processes for ongoing feedback. For example, for groups like the SWAAG. But overall, we’ve concluded all the reviews. The one contentious issue that is really out there is the structure of the conference, and as well, we want to give a full and comprehensive response to the concerns put forward and recommendations put forward by the stakeholders, the Wildlife Act advisory groups.
I’d like to thank the Minister for that. There are two major initiatives happening right now. One of them is devolution, of course, and the other one is the proposed changes to the Wildlife Act. They touch on the very core of fundamental treaty rights and Aboriginal title, so I wanted to ask the Minister how will the devolution negotiations affect the proposed Wildlife Act.
The Wildlife Act discussions have been going on for well over a decade, into the last century, so I can recollect it all the way back to the 13th Assembly. This will be done and is being done independent of devolution. Even if there was no devolution, the Wildlife Act would go forward. It’s been identified as a priority by nearly all the Aboriginal governments, by this government, by people in the Northwest Territories as long overdue. They will be compatible at the end of the day. They reaffirm the respect and recognition of Aboriginal rights, both the Wildlife Act and the work being done with devolution. In that regard, there’s clear consistency. But the Wildlife Act is a piece of legislation that this government, this territory has to look at and it’s been intent on getting done now for a long time and stands on its own as a separate initiative.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Nadli.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What is being done to address the Aboriginal people’s concerns about the new Wildlife Act in terms of its potential effects on treaty rights and Aboriginal title? Mahsi.
The Wildlife Act is a unique piece of legislation that has, in fact, been drafted in partnership with the Aboriginal governments. We’ve had the working group members comprised of members from Inuvialuit, Gwich’in, Sahtu, Tlicho, Metis, as well as seats at the table for the Akaitcho and representatives from the Dehcho First Nation, should they choose to attend and when they choose to attend. It has been that collective that has worked to draft the Wildlife Act, a unique process in this country of Canada, a unique bill that has no equal in this country. We have made tremendous efforts to involve the Aboriginal governments, including the First Nations, and we will continue that commitment. We reflect that practice in a whole host of areas with our discussions on devolution, with our discussions on water, and the Wildlife Act is indicative of that kind of commitment to process as well.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I listened with interest to my colleagues from Yellowknife talking about the wait times for driver testing. I understand that there is urgency sometimes for people to get their driver’s licence, and it is a concern. I’d like to put a little different spin on it.
About 40 years ago next week I was turning 16 and I wanted to get my driver’s licence on my birthday, so I didn’t stay in the small town or go to the city where you had to wait. I went to this other small town where they issued driver testing and driver’s licences. I got my parents to drive me to that town, and I passed my learners and I got my driver’s licence on my 16th birthday.
But, Mr. Speaker, the wait time in Hay River isn’t three months. I understand it’s less than two weeks, so I have a suggestion for people in Yellowknife that maybe they’d like to just take a quick flight over the lake, come down to Hay River. We’ve got a small company there that does driver training. I’m sure they’d give you a quick orientation and you could probably, for a small fee, use their car and take your driver testing.
I’d like to ask the Minister of Transportation: A driver’s licence issued in any community in the Northwest Territories is good anywhere to drive anywhere, I trust? Thank you.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Ramsay.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. A Northwest Territories driver’s licence issued at any community in the Northwest Territories is good anywhere in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
Could the Minister, after the research he did for my colleagues, confirm that the wait time for Hay River is less than two weeks to take a test?
The stats that I’ve received from the department would indicate that wait times in Hay River for a driver’s licence and road test would be one to two weeks. Yes.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have some questions today for the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation and following up on my Member’s statement and the need for housing in Yellowknife.
The corporation, to its credit, did a shelter policy review within the last year to two years, and the results of that review were a report, and basically, I believe that that report is a plan for the future for the NWT Housing Corporation. I’d like to ask the Minister, relative to the report that came as a result of the shelter policy review, and in light of the need in Yellowknife for both public housing units and transitional housing, how this plan, in particular, addresses the needs for more public housing units in Yellowknife. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, Mr. McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member is correct; there was a report done. One of the recommendations that came out of the report, Yellowknife, I think the biggest issue was affordability, and that’s one of the reasons that the Rent Supplement Program came into play.
There is a need for public housing all across the Northwest Territories; Yellowknife and some of the larger centres because they’re market communities, it’s a little harder to get more public housing in there. We do have 311 public housing units in Yellowknife. I think there are 169 of our own, plus we have some lease units, as we do in most communities. But affordability was one of the major issues, according to the report, as far as Yellowknife goes.
Thanks to the Minister for the response. I have to totally agree with him. That’s the point of my statement. Affordability is absolutely an issue. The rental market in Yellowknife is such that people cannot afford to rent in Yellowknife, and we don’t have enough public housing, which would give them some opportunity to lower their rental costs.
I’d like to know from the Minister, in terms of addition of public housing units to communities, I’m sure there’s a priority list. I’d like to know from the Minister where Yellowknife and the addition of public housing units in the city of Yellowknife sit in terms of priorities of adding units to the Housing Corporation stock.
Because of our limited infrastructure budget, we were fortunate. In the last two years we’ve had a huge investment from the federal government. But we’re back to our original number of $17 million. A lot of it’s for public housing replacement units. I can assure the Member that Yellowknife’s very high on the priority. I believe there are about 61 units that may have been built or started in 2012-13, and my understanding is Yellowknife was probably getting about 23 of these units. In some cases we buy units that we can convert into public housing instead of building. That way we get more value for our dollar.
Thanks to the Minister. I appreciate that Yellowknife’s not on the bottom of the list. That’s good to hear.
My other point that I was trying to make, and thus my question to the Minister, has to do with transitional housing and the need for transitional housing here. I’d like to know where that sits in terms of the shelter policy review and the report that came from that. Thank you.
