Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was mentioned by the Premier in his sessional statement and it has been mentioned by the Finance Minister several times that a revision of NWT boards and agencies is under consideration. We have over 700 boards and agencies in the NWT for a population of only 43,000 people or so. That’s the size of a small city elsewhere. We have far more boards than are necessary, and I believe we can experience considerable savings to the budget’s bottom line as a result of consolidation of these boards.
There are many options that are available to us. The community services board model used in Behchoko by the Tlicho is serving them well. The same model might work in other areas of the NWT, but it will not work everywhere. Another option is to consolidate all health boards into one with regional representation. The same could be done with education boards. There are many other combinations and hybrids of our current system open to us if we get creative. No option should be dismissed outright.
But consolidation of the boards in the city of Yellowknife will be especially difficult; I would suggest almost impossible. The two education boards in Yellowknife, for instance, have been autonomous, effective organizations for over 60 years. They only receive 70 per cent of their funding from the GNWT; the remainder comes from local taxation. That makes them unique and demands special consideration for them in any revision plan. Combining the health, education and housing authorities of the city of Yellowknife will create an organization bigger than most government departments. I hope the Minister plans very carefully for any changes to Yellowknife boards.
But, Mr. Speaker, for any revision process to have validity, there has to be significant consultation with the existing boards and agencies. It needs to be much more than a questionnaire sent in the mail. Personal conversations are required. The government must actually listen to what our board members have to say. We might be surprised at what we hear.
Lastly, Mr. Speaker, it’s mandatory that wide consultation take place with these same boards after a draft plan for revision has been developed. People need to be able to comment on the details of a plan that will significantly impact them. I commend the Minister for taking the initiative to implement board revision and look forward to the results of his work. I, too, am anxious to contribute my own comments.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
