Debates of October 28, 2004 (day 30)

Mr. Speaker, the implementation plan has been drafted. I did table it in the House. Maybe the Member could take the time to refer to that document. Thank you.

Federal Funding To The Government Of The Northwest Territories

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier, the Honourable Joseph Handley.

Please provide to all Members of this House the total yearly funding contribution made to the Government of the Northwest Territories by the federal government in the last 10 years. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Please provide the dates for completion of the Main Street Chipsealing Program for all of the communities in the Sahtu region.

Please also provide a cost estimate of each project.

Other than chipsealing, please provide information with regard to alternate methods of paving roads and controlling dust.

Mahsi.

Guidelines And Processes For Sole Source And Negotiated Contracts

Mr. Speaker, I am in receipt of Return to Written Question 38-15(3), asked by Ms. Lee to the Honourable Floyd Roland, Minister of Public Works and Services, regarding guidelines and processes for sole source and negotiated contracts.

Government contract regulations specify that a sole source contract can only be used if:

the goods, services or construction are urgently required and delay would be injurious to the public interest;

only one party is available and capable of performing the contract; and,

the contract is an architectural or engineering contract that will not exceed $25,000 in value or is any other type of contract that will not exceed $1,000 in value.

When awarding all sole source contracts, due diligence is exercised to ensure that the best possible product is purchased. In the case of an award based on the "only one party" criteria, the contract authority must use their judgment in determining that only one party is available and capable of providing the good or service. This will vary from situation to situation.

In the case of the family law clinic, a public request for proposals was issued on August 9th and closed August 27, 2004. The request for proposals was publicly advertised in l'Aquilon and News/North newspapers and on the GNWT contracts website. Yellowknife landlords had ample opportunity to provide proposals, and those that did were considered.

Following cancellation of the unsuccessful proposal call, a decision was made to negotiate a sole source contract with the one developer that declared that they had suitable space. The decision was justified by the poor response to the public call for proposals, which confirmed the department's understanding that there is very little available office space with the features required in downtown Yellowknife

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document entitled Annual Report on Official Languages, 2003-2004. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled NWT Development Corporation 2003-2004 Annual Report. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS electrical power is an essential service;

AND WHEREAS affordable electric power is essential to the economic growth and viability of NWT communities;

AND WHEREAS the Government of the Northwest Territories’ strategic plan identifies reducing the cost of living in the North as a priority;

AND WHEREAS there is a wide disparity between power rates paid in small communities that rely on diesel generated power compared to communities with access to hydro or natural gas power with residential rates ranging between the extremes of 12.13 cents per kilowatt hour and $2.66 per kilowatt hour;

AND WHEREAS the current full cost recovery rate structure disadvantages consumers within small communities and who rely on diesel generated power;

AND WHEREAS the price of crude oil recently exceeded $55 per barrel U.S.;

AND WHEREAS the Territorial Power Subsidy Program only equalizes residential rates for the first 700 kilowatt hours and qualifying business rates for the first 1,000 kilowatt hours, which is inadequate for many small businesses;

AND WHEREAS the Public Utilities Board, in decision 5-95, stated in the context of the affordability of power rates, that it is the responsibility of the GNWT to set policies with respect to matters of social engineering;

AND WHEREAS affordable power rates would have long-term social and economic benefits and would result in equal and fair treatment of all NWT power consumers;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Nahendeh, that the government review the Territorial Power Subsidy Program immediately to ensure that consumers in communities which rely on diesel power do not suffer any further hardship as a result of increasing oil prices;

AND FURTHER that the government direct the Northwest Territories Power Corporation to provide information on options respecting the current community-based rate structure in light of practices in other jurisdictions and general principles of fairness.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. A motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. To the motion.

Question.

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? The motion is carried.

---Carried

---Applause

I am going to call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Menicoche.

Madam Chair, the committee wishes to consider Ministers’ statements.

Okay. In any particular order, or just all of the Ministers’ statements that are on the order paper? Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Madam Chair. We will begin with Minister's Statement 70-15(3), and then we will discuss 48-15(3), 49-15(3) and 54-15(3).

Does the committee agree?

Agreed.

Agreed. Thank you. We will take a short break.

---SHORT RECESS

I am going to call Committee of the Whole back to order. The first Minister’s statement that we are going to look at today is Minister's Statement 70-15(3), Report on Ottawa Meetings, that was given by the Premier today. Are they any general comments? Thank you, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson. I just had a few comments on the Premier’s report on his Ottawa meetings. I just wanted to ask the Premier if he had the opportunity to look at setting up meetings with the leaders of Canada’s opposition parties, especially the Conservative Party of Canada and the New Democratic Party of Canada -- Mr. Layton and Mr. Harper -- and if he didn’t meet with those two gentlemen on this trip, when he might be looking at meeting with them. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Handley.

Madam Chairperson, I didn’t have time on this trip to meet with them. The schedule was full from when I arrived to the hour I left. I did have a conversation with our staff person in Ottawa and asked her to set up meetings for when I am next in Ottawa. Right now I believe I’m in Ottawa on November 26th or 29th for other things. I do intend to meet with Mr. Layton and Mr. Harper at that time. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Handley. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson. The next thing I just wanted to mention, I’m not sure exactly what happens when the Premier and the Finance Minister go to Ottawa and I haven’t been part of those meetings, but if they get an opportunity to have a face-to-face meeting with the Prime Minister himself, or is it his staff, how does that work exactly? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Premier Handley.

The Prime Minister is very good at giving us the opportunity to meet face to face, one on one when we need to. If he can fit it in at all, he will and the meetings are generally face to face. When I was in Ottawa this week on Sunday, the Prime Minister, Premier Fentie, Premier Okalik and I met with the Prime Minister for a half-hour before any other Minister was brought into the room, and we had time to discuss some things privately. Then following that private meeting, the process is that we will bring in whoever we have to. The only officials who attend the meetings that we have with the Prime Minister though on this kind of situation were one note taker from the territories' side and one note taker from the federal side. These two individuals will compare their notes to make sure that they have got the same record. But it is face to face with the Prime Minister.

I might also, add, Madam Chairperson, that the Prime Minister also takes a great deal of pride in being able to say I return phone calls to Premiers; and I can say that he has been very good at doing that in returning any calls that I have made to him. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Handley. Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson. Thank you, Mr. Premier, for that. I know the meetings were on equalization and on the territorial formula financing agreement, but did you have an opportunity to again address the issue of setting aside our resource revenue in trust for the citizens of the Northwest Territories? Did you have a chance to discuss that with the Prime Minister on this trip to Ottawa? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr Handley.

Madam Chairperson, I didn’t talk to him specifically about setting up a trust fund or a heritage fund, but I did raise, as part of our discussions on a northern strategy, the need for consideration of resource revenue sharing and the need for us to begin to negotiate an interim process fairly quickly. I might also say that I also emphasised that we don’t want to get some of these kinds of exercises like negotiating in terms of resource revenue sharing arrangement tied up in some long, drawn-out strategy development process. I made that point to the Prime Minister: let’s not slow down some of the quick wins by rolling them into the strategy. He was in agreement with that.

Thank you, Premier Handley. Thank you. Next on the list I have Mr. Hawkins and Mr. Braden. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, my question is in regards to the concerns I was raising last week, which was Canada’s involvement with the missile defence program specifically with the United States, and my questions were directed to the Premier during question period at that time. I can refer to the page and whatnot but, just in a brief summary, I was asking about our involvement and where is our policy and what are we doing about it. The last item mentioned in a return to my question by the Premier was basically this issue would be brought up with his meeting with the Prime Minister of Canada. I can cite the specific pages, but I‘ve already done that earlier when I got called on that point of order; however, I’m sure it’s not necessarily necessary at this time.

Could the Premier explain today what he did bring up in that regard to the Prime Minister, as he did sort of commit at that time that he would bring that issue to the front of some of their discussions? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Premier Handley.

Madam Chair, I didn’t talk specifically about ballistic missiles; I may have mentioned it. But certainly one of the issues or one of the items I had identified in our proposal to the Prime Minister on a long-term strategy was sovereignty and security, and within that package would fit the ballistic missile defence system.

Madam Chair, I also have on my desk a draft copy of a letter that I am looking at signing, along with the other two territorial Premiers, and sending to the Prime Minister, that deals specifically with the ballistic missile defence and the need for us to be involved and briefed on what is happening here and be kept up to speed as this unfolds.

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have to really say thank you, Mr. Premier, I think that’s a good day for the Northwest Territories as well as a good day for the other two territories taking a serious look at this issue. I think it’s a great day. I’m excited to hear that, I guess. All I can ask at this stage, assuming that the letter is probably in draft with some confidence between the other Premiers, would the Minister be able to share a draft copy with MLAs at this time to see what you are asking to get a sense of that perspective, as well as I think you indicated or alluded to a package? Would the Premier be able to share that package of information with all Members to keep us up to speed on this issue? Madam Chair, can the Premier commit to that at this time? Also recognizing that some of this information may be confidential, maybe if the Premier could speak to that. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Handley.

Madam Chairperson, I don’t have a problem with sharing with MLAs, but I want to check with the other two territorial Premiers as well, to make sure that they are fine with that. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Handley. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Madam Chair. If the Premier could give me some indication as to when this letter may be going out, I suspect it’s probably under some quite significant scrutiny to make sure on a big issue like this that it gets written properly so the messages are clear. Would the Premier be able to indicate roughly when this letter would be going out? Because I’ll give the Premier the latitude of the assumption that if it’s going out this week, maybe next week, I am certainly satisfied to wait until the letter goes out, but if the letter is going to be sitting on his desk for another month due to the…(inaudible)…scrutiny, I don’t want to wait a month. I don’t mind waiting a week, I think that is probably reasonable if he has to consult or if the letter just needs to be formalized, but when does the Premier think the letter will go out? Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Premier.

Madam Chairperson, the main thing that has to happen with the letter now is for it to be updated, since it was first drafted, to reflect the meeting we had earlier this week. So as quickly as that is done, I expect it will go out. We will have a letter to that effect going out this week, unless the other Premiers were to change their mind in the meantime. But it’s basically a letter that just says look, let us know, Prime Minister, what is happening on this front, we want to be briefed before actions are taken. We live here, we are concerned about these things flying around over our heads and the possible landing in our territory. So I expect this letter will go out pretty quickly, not months from now.