Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize all of the visitors that we have in the gallery this afternoon. Especially I wanted to recognize Chief Edward Sangris with the Yellowknives Dene.
I also wanted to recognize, I know she’s been recognized before, my constituency assistant, Ms. Wendy Morgan. Thanks again, Wendy, for all of your hard work and your commitment to my office and helping me do my duties as MLA.
I also wanted to recognize Mr. Kevin O’Reilly, a former colleague of mine at City Hall.
I’ve also got in the gallery today a friend of mine, a consultant, David Wasylciw. Welcome to the House, David.
Also, I wanted to recognize Paula Walsh. I know the Premier did earlier, but I met Paula in Quebec earlier this year, and it’s great to see you here in the Northwest Territories. Enjoy your visit. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Welcome to everybody here in the public gallery. Thank you for taking an interest in our proceedings.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This week is Fire Prevention Week. I would like to take this opportunity to recognize this year’s NWT Fire Service Merit Award recipient, Inuvik’s fire chief, Jim Sawkins. Chief Sawkins has been a firefighter for the past 35 years, with the past 15 as fire chief. He has been a fire chief for the Town of Inuvik for the past four years and, through his experience, has provided the volunteer fire department with a great training ground and sense of professionalism.
Chief Sawkins is actively involved with various territorial committees. He’s the president of the NWT Fire Chiefs’ Association, regional representative for the Beaufort-Delta region and sits as a member of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs’ National Advisory Council. He also just recently received the chief fire officer designation.
Fire Chief Jim Sawkins would like to highlight the fact that any achievements were only possible through the acceptance, hard work and dedication of the Inuvik volunteer firefighters and through the assistance of the NWT Fire Chiefs’ Association executive. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I rise in the House to acknowledge my constituent Sarah Erasmus, a Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, or SAIT, Polytechnic Outstanding Alumni for 2015.
Through launching her own clothing company, Erasmus Apparel, she’s woven herself into the very fabric of Yellowknife and transformed an idea into a thriving business.
With eight employees, unique northern designs and a growing reputation, she’s sold more than 60,000 items through a storefront and online operations and proved that homegrown, sustainable businesses can thrive here.
I invite my colleagues to join me in congratulating Sarah Erasmus for a job well done.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure today to wish one of the most respected elders in the Mackenzie Delta a very happy 100th birthday on October 18th. Gwich’in elder Peter Kay Sr. from Fort McPherson is to be commended on healthy living and for taking care of his family and also living the Gwich’in cultural lifestyle for a whole century.
Mr. Kay’s livelihood, active living and positive outlook on life and family have given him the opportunity to spend precious time with his family at 100 years young.
I might add that Peter has passed down precious traditional knowledge to his sons and daughters as well as grandchildren whom he helped raise. His knowledge and storytelling will continue to be shared with his huge family as he blows out his 100 candles.
Mr. Peter Kay and his wife, Mary, who is 96 years old, are the oldest living couple in the Mackenzie Delta. They celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in 2014. I would like my colleagues to help me extend warm wishes to this happy couple.
Mr. Speaker, Members of the Legislative Assembly, please join me in congratulating Peter Kay on his 100th birthday. They are also still living at home, too, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. Before I call a 15-minute break, I’d like to wish Mr. Kevin Menicoche, for yesterday, a happy birthday.
---Applause
And for today, Mr. Jackson Lafferty turns 50.
---Applause
Happy birthday. I will call a 15-minute recess.
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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just have a few questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. The feasibility study of universal affordable daycare in the Northwest Territories was tabled in this House on June 4, 2015, and recommended consolidating early childhood education and daycare grants, including small community initiatives grants.
What actions is the Department of Education, Culture and Employment taking to make daycare more accessible and more affordable in our small communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. We’ve initiated the feasibility study that’s been undertaken by my department through a consultant. There’s been a lot of engagement with the general public and stakeholders across the Northwest Territories. Obviously, one of the key points that they’ve highlighted is for us to work very closely with the communities, all nine remote communities and the most isolated communities in the Northwest Territories. Some community members and also organizations feel left out of the core programs that are being delivered at the regional basis.
That is some of the emphasis that’s been highlighted as part of the recommendations which will be brought forward to the 18th Assembly to decide if they want to move forward on that. Mahsi.
The Department of Education, Culture and Employment offers funding to licenced daycare centres and day homes. There are different rates for different regions and communities.
What options are available for communities in the Mackenzie Delta? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, we are currently subsidizing the daycare establishments and early childhood centres across the Northwest Territories. We have provided funding for programming, the mortgage. There are various subsidies that we provide to these establishments. One of the highlights, obviously, part of this feasibility study is to capture what is being provided currently and how can we improve in those areas. Again, capturing those small communities has been highlighted by the stakeholders, and some of the recommendations, obviously, will capture that. It is an integrated approach, working with various organizations, so that will be put forward to the 18th Assembly.
What will the Minister be recommending to the 18th Legislative Assembly to improve support and funding daycare centres and family day homes, especially in our small communities?
The feasibility study, the outcome of the report and then the recommendations that came out of that will be brought forward to the 18th Assembly government. It does cover a spectrum of how we can improve our current programming that we have. As I stated before in this House, there’s always room for improvement in the programming, in departmental division areas. We look forward to those types of discussions as we move forward.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Minister, I know we are closing the 17th Legislative Assembly here, but is the department open to pilot projects?
Those are discussions that need to happen within the next government. We’re at the end of our session here and we only have a couple weeks as Regular Members now, so our term will be up as Ministers, Cabinet and Executive. This, what the Member is alluding to, obviously, will be brought forward within the next government to decide if they want to proceed with that other project.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to give Mr. Miltenberger a break here today. I’d like to talk about tourism for my last set of questions. NWT Tourism likes to market the NWT as a premier world-wide tourist destination. However, hampered with a limited budget and a complex five regional marketing plan, it does beg to ask how we’re able to compete on the national and world stage when it comes to tourism. The traveller is more sophisticated than ever and is looking for that wow factor. My question has always been are we able to deliver at that level. With that in mind, my questions will be for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.
A successful tourism economy depends on a skilled workforce and a world-class hospitality program.
Can the Minister inform the House how his department supports the development of human resources that will ensure that the visitors to the NWT will have this experience that exceeds this wow factor?
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m very proud of our record of support for skills development in the tourism industry. ITI has hosted numerous courses on boat safety and first aid to improve the level of safety of our tourism operations. We’ve developed a tourism hospitality program focused on Aboriginal people, and conducted many hospitality training workshops over the life of this government.
Our Tourism 2015 plan rested on three pillars: people, communities, and business. Continued investment in the skills of the people in this industry is essential for future economic growth, and I hope that the new government will continue to support the development of business acumen of our tourism entrepreneurs and the skills of people that they employ.
A recent article in the Huffington Post had Yellowknife as the fasted growing tourism destination in Canada. That’s a testament to the hard work and commitment of the folks in our tourism industry.
During the life of this government there have been two trade missions to China, costing taxpayers significant investment.
Can the Minister stand before this House and clearly demonstrate a tangible benefit from these junket missions?
Again, we’re very proud of the work that we’ve done in China. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in the number of visitors from China, since a handful in the low hundreds in 2010, to between January of last year and July this year, well over 7,000 Chinese visitors. We have recently hosted the ambassador from China to Canada here in Yellowknife, in Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk.
We’ve only really scratched the surface at the potential of the Chinese market. Markets in Asia remain fertile ground for us when it comes to tourism and attracting more folks here, and undoubtedly, the next government will be conducting further missions to promote and market the Northwest Territories to Asian markets, specifically China, Japan, and others.
For the record, NWT has a handicap in tourism and marketing investment compared to the rest of Canada. Two years ago this Assembly approved a substantial increase to its marketing budget for the NWT Tourism.
Can the Minister of ITI provide us with a brief description of the benefits with that increased funding that he received?
The numbers I spoke of earlier, I think a direct correlation can be drawn with the fact that this government, and with the support of that side of the House, supported the increased efforts in marketing our tourism industry here in the Northwest Territories, promoting the products that we have here, and I think the numbers we’re starting to see now are paying off. That investment is certainly paying off.
We shouldn’t kid ourselves, though. Out of the 13 jurisdictions in this country, the Northwest Territories ranks 12th in terms of what we put into marketing the tourism industry. We have seen some substantial growth. But if we look across to our west and into the Yukon, they spend $7 million on marketing their tourism industry on an annual basis and we’re at about $2 million. Really, we have to find a way and a means to continue to support the marketing efforts and promoting the products and services in the tourism industry here in the Northwest Territories, not just domestically here in Canada or in North America and the United States but also internationally. We have made some big strides over the last four years, and as I had mentioned earlier, the potential is immense when it comes to the Asian market.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Minister is aware, his department was provided additional funding for tourism programs under the Economic Opportunities Strategy.
Can the Minister tell the House what benefits were derived from this investment?
One of the primary contributions through the EOS and the recommendation was for a convention bureau. We funded that at $100,000 a year. That’s had a direct impact. We’ve been able to attract conferences, hopefully, bringing well over a million dollars in economic impact here to the Northwest Territories. Looking at the regional marketing dollars, $50,000 goes into each region to allow the regions to market products specifically in their own region. We have resources for product development that have allowed investment in community tourism, leveraging over a million dollars in federal funding from CanNor. EOS funding for community tourism infrastructure was invested in projects and communities across the Northwest Territories including Tsiigehtchic, Inuvik, Jean Marie River, Kakisa, Hay River, Tulita and Yellowknife.
As I mentioned, we don’t have the biggest marketing budget, so wherever possible we need to take those dollars we have and leverage them to try to maximize the exposure that the Northwest Territories gets both on the national and international stage.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have recently learned that the Bower Group is a trustee out of Vancouver and they’ve come to Yellowknife to take possession of the two diamond cutting plants owned by Deepak Kumar, and he’s also known as Deepak International. Now, the actual possession itself is not the concern of this Assembly, and certainly the people of the Northwest Territories, but it’s more about the message of what’s happening with our diamond cutting industry that is of great concern.
To set the questions up properly, some time ago the government agreed to give Mr. Deepak Kumar the ability to have the polar bear logo and to provide access for rough, and of course, they took almost three years to get through this process so he’d finally end up with the buildings, which is part of the issue. I’m going to start my first set of questions off to the Minister of ITI. Knowing that he’s in receivership and they’re now liquidating his assets, what happens to the polar bear logo and what type of messaging are we getting out there as a government to say which way our diamond industry is going? Because, frankly, it appears more that it’s a fledgling industry and we had someone who came in, we gave them whatever they wanted and they’ve been unable to succeed. I’m concerned, as well as many others are, where our diamond industry is going. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The secondary industry and the benefaction when it comes to diamonds around the world has been hit very hard. There have been factories closing in locations like Namibia, Vietnam and even in India, lower cost environments. So the economics right now aren’t, obviously, the best.
The issue the Member talks about is a private business matter and really we shouldn’t be discussing that on the floor of this House. Thank you.
I’m not getting into his private, personal matter, but it is a matter of public record out there. So it’s not a secret, but where it really matters to the people of the Northwest Territories is a particular issue of concern about where diamonds are going and that’s certainly it. You cannot have one without the other. So the Government of the Northwest Territories gave this person the ability to have sole, exclusive rights on the polar bear logo and I want to know what the next steps are.
Is the government going to retract that offer, suspend it? I don’t even know what they take back for goodness sakes.
So, is the government in a position to take back his sole, exclusive right to use the polar bear logo on diamonds? Thank you.
Officials at the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment continue to work with the proponent on the factories, and again, it’s a private business matter and best not discussed on the floor of this House. Thank you.
Three years ago this Minister talked about this being the rebirth of the industry and I even brought it up not that long ago about what’s happening, because clearly the gestation of this first cycle is a very long one. But the point, in a serious note, is if the department continues to work with them to cut diamonds and get our polar bear logo on diamonds, in three years how many diamonds have been cut using this cut and how many diamonds have the NWT polar bear logo on it that the government holds and certainly tried to market? A lot of dollars went into marketing diamonds, a lot of effort, we have a diamond division. I mean, a lot of focus from this government has been to promote diamonds, and if we have one that we’ve given all the rights to, frankly my concern is we don’t know where we’re going and the public won’t know either. So, will the Minister be willing to answer that? Thank you.
Again, the secondary industry is in a bit of a downturn. The economics aren’t very good. Factories are closing around the world. We sold the two factory buildings on Archibald Street a year and a half ago and we continue to hope that at some point in time those factories do open, but right now we don’t have people banging our door down to get into this business. We’ve also got revenue from leases on those buildings.
Again, the purchase price of those buildings was somewhere near $2 million that the government was able to recoup.
Again, our hope is that at some point in time those buildings are producing diamonds. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. While the Minister says we don’t have people banging our doors down, but the last three years when this deal had been made, nothing has been cut. He said maybe we’ll get lease money, but my understanding is the lease has been in arrears. Reading in the Yellowknifer a number of weeks ago, you could see they weren’t even paying property taxes. We weren’t the only ones fooled in this deal. Callidus is a lending agency and they were sold a bill of goods about how great things would be. So, what is the Minister willing to do to help revoke their authority of having the polar bear logo on diamonds, because I don’t know what they’re doing outside the Northwest Territories, and furthermore, is the Minister willing to step in and give the department direction so they can end any type of informal or formal agreement they may have with diamond companies where they are guaranteed a supply of rough? We don’t know what they’re getting and what they’re doing with it. This is very concerning. This has never emerged to result in anything positive. Thank you.
Thank you. I guess I take a different view on this than the Member. We recouped close to $2 million. To my knowledge, lease payments are up to date; taxes are up to date on those two buildings. So, again, we will work through the process and this is a legal agreement that we have with the proponent. We will continue to work through the processes that are there and involve the right people in sorting this out. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
