Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has made a commitment in its mandate to capture opportunities for investment in transportation infrastructure by working to secure funding to advance the Tlicho allseason road. Mr. Speaker, according to the Tlicho chief, Alfonz Nitsiza of Whati, the project will provide culture strength to the Tlicho people aside from economic benefits. This project is not only a source of future prosperity but is also a source of pride for the region. The road has been discussed by the Tlicho government as far back as 1980s, and their support is evident through the critical role they have played in advancing this project progress. The Tlicho government worked in collaboration with the Government of the Northwest Territories to complete the project description report which has been submitted on March 31st to the Wek’eezhii Land and Water Board for review and permitting. This partnership will continue to be critical to the swift success of the project as both parties await a decision on the next steps in the process. In the meantime, the funding for the project is being sought under the P3 Canada program. The department has built a strong case for investment by citing the many social and economic benefits of building this road. Transportation affects the cost of every component of the household expenditure, meaning that any improvements to transportation system will help reduce the cost of living. A yearround connection to Whati and an increased access for the communities of Gameti and Wekweeti will provide efficiencies, including lower travel time and shipping costs which will support resupply operations and businesses in the region. During mobilization and construction and demobilization, many goodpaying jobs will become available to the residents. These jobs will provide skills and training that are transferable to other industries, helping to develop a strong northern workforce. The project will have benefits beyond just Whati. For the NWT as a whole, increased access will result in new opportunities to continue developing the region’s economic potential. An allseason road would reduce the exploration and development costs for industry and attracting further investment that supports a strong NWT economy. More importantly, the road will reduce the cost of living for the residents of Whati. The construction of the road to Whati will also increase the length of the operating season for the winter roads serving the communities of Gameti and Wekweeti. Replacing the southern end of the existing winter road will help us deal with challenges arising from changing temperatures and precipitation. This will contribute to a reliable access throughout the region and help support the department’s priority for a more resilient transportation system in the face of climate change. For all these reasons, we believe our business case for the federal investment in the construction of the Tlicho allseason road is strong. In February 2016, investment in this project was included among the recommendations made in the final report of Canada’s Transportation Act review. The federal government is engaging with key stakeholders and governments and the public across Canada to discuss the report this summer. During this engagement process, our government will stress the importance of implementing all recommendations for the investment in an NWT transportation system, including the Tlicho allseason road. As we move on to the next steps of this significant project, the GNWT is pleased to have the continued partnership of the people of the Tlicho region to advance our shared visions of creating strong, prosperous, and vibrant communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The mandate of the Government of the Northwest Territories commits to improving care for our people through the integration of a health and social services system. We are working towards building a unified health and social services system that will deliver the best possible care to our residents. We have made significant investment in this work through our system transformation, and I’m pleased to announce that we are now reaching some important milestones. We have announced to the members of the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Leadership Council as well as regional wellness councils for this new system. With this important step completed, I would like to remind us all of the vision that brought us to this point and provide an update on how this work will progress leading up to the August 1st implementation date. Health and social services system transformation is a change in governance that is designed to reorganize the way we manage and administer our system. This new governance model is a foundational piece from which future changes and innovations in our system will flow. The new system will see regional knowledge brought to the territorial leadership council table through participation by the chairs of the regional wellness councils. This approach was designed based on broad stakeholder engagement. We heard through our public engagement that many changes were needed to the access, consistency, and cultural appropriateness of care and services in our system. Come August 1st, we will be looking at a new structure that will help us address these issues and break down systemic barriers. On August 1st, we’ll put in place the territorial authority with an excellent leadership team that can start to focus on making changes and keep the priority areas, including child and family services, mental health and addictions, and quality and safety. We will also have the opportunity to consolidate finance and procurement, setting the stage to achieve immediate efficiencies and improve our ability to track and maintain costs. Over the next three years, we will see each of these areas addressed and changes made to help improve care and service delivery and make our system more efficient. As we find efficiencies in the system, such as shared procurement and contracting, we will be able to streamline how these services are delivered. While I continue to emphasize that this isn’t a costcutting exercise, it is clear that, in order to deal with increasing pressures, we must find ways to contain costs. In communities and regional authorities across the Territories, there are programs and teams of individuals who are doing great work in innovating and provide the best care and services possible. Under our current system, we don’t have a formalized mechanism to take those lessons and best practices and implement them across the regions. The new territorial authority supported by the leadership council and the regional wellness councils will change this. On August 1st, our ability to apply these lessons and best practices consistently throughout the Territories will increase for the benefit of all residents. We are aware that change doesn’t happen overnight. System transformation is a process, and it will take time for us to see improvements in health outcomes. I am confident that through these changes we will build a health and social services system that provides for the best outcomes possible for all NWT residents. As we come closer to the implementation date, we will continue to work with current health and social services authorities to communicate with all staff in the system about the upcoming changes. We will also be working with the Tlicho Community Services Agency and the Hay River Health and Social Services Authority to ensure that we carry strong partnerships forward as the new authority comes online. Finally, I’d like to recognize the great work of all those in the current system, including CEOs, board members and chairs, administrators, and all of the staff working to provide the best care and services for our residents. I know many of these individuals will continue on in the new system in new roles on the regional wellness councils and territorial leadership council, and I look forward to working with all these individuals. I will provide further updates on this work as it progresses, and I look forward to August 1st, when our new authority comes into force. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Deputy Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to advise the Members that the Honourable Bob McLeod will be absent from the House today to attend the address to Parliament by President Obama in Ottawa, Ontario. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to take this opportunity to speak about an organization in Fort Simpson that has a huge impact in the arts, culture, and entertainment community across the North. I’ve had the opportunity to witness this organization grow from its first breath some 16 years ago to where it is today. Open Sky Society has a long history in Fort Simpson in Nahendeh. Open Sky will be hosting its 16th Annual Open Sky Festival this July. This event brings multiple benefits to the village of Fort Simpson and the businesses in the region. The festival is a tourist draw and creates economic opportunities for local businesses. The festival also provides local, regional, and territorial artists with a venue to sell their arts and crafts and to demonstrate the traditional workmanship that Nahendeh is well known for. The Fort Simpson residents, including myself, look forward to the festival every year and its lineup of musical performers and arts workshops. Open Sky also runs other popular events throughout the year, including workshops, coffee houses, gallery events, and musical performances. The society is also an important supporter of the performances that the Northern Arts and Culture Centre brings to Fort Simpson. Mr. Speaker, throughout all of its work, Open Sky is dedicated to promoting local artists in art and culture traditions in the region. Open Sky employs local artists as workshop facilitators and demonstrators and offer them free space, free of charge, to sell their artwork through the OSC gallery. The continuation of the traditional art form in Nahendeh is important, and Open Sky is very supportive of this. I’ve been informed by the Open Sky’s executive director that the arts organization operating fund contribution program has recently been unveiled by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. I’d like to thank the department and Minister Moses for coming up with this great program that will help societies like Open Sky receive operation support to ensure these societies can continue to offer its valuable performances in support of the arts and artists across the NWT. In closing, the festival has become a summertime tradition in Fort Simpson. Residents look forward to the long weekend event and eagerly await the announcement of the upcoming participants, participating musicians, performers, and artists. Every year, Open Sky devotes considerable energy to draw a wide range of NWT performers to Fort Simpson. I would like to thank this society for all their hard work in putting Fort Simpson and Nahendeh on the entertainment and arts map. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on the last day of this session, I want to take this opportunity to speak about the work we’ve done together over the past five weeks. It has not always been an easy time for Members on either side of the House, Mr. Speaker. There have been challenges for all of us to try to find common ground, to sit through competing priorities and find areas where we can work together. But, overall, Mr. Speaker, I feel that we have had more good days than not, more days of constructive work and cooperation than times of indifference. We’ve gone through a number of steps to get here today. We came together to develop and adopt our mandate. We learned how to work together at the committee level. We reviewed and evaluated departmental business plans and then, finally, over the last six weeks we have discussed and debated the main estimates here in the House. Mr. Speaker, to be frank, when we started, I don’t think we were quite seeing eye to eye. We clearly had matters and issues between Cabinet and Regular Members that polarized us somewhat. Ultimately, through collaboration and meaningful compromise and, most importantly, respect, we found ways to lessen the gaps and bring us back to a certain level of agreement. On this final day, Mr. Speaker, I’d like to express my gratitude to all my colleagues on both sides for their hard work and effort. It can be difficult at times to move forward, but it’s important to recognize that you might not get everything you want from the process. That said, I think, collectively, we demonstrated the conviction and hard work that’s needed to find common ground that was acceptable to all and ultimately a balanced approach that serves the common good of the Northwest Territories and its people. On another note, I’d like to extend a special thank you to all the Pages who have helped us during the sitting. We simply cannot get through session without you, so thank you very much. Lastly, Mr. Speaker, I look forward to continuing the work together on our next steps, the business plan reviews and the capital budgets in the fall. I hope everyone travels safe and enjoys the summer break. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Nunakput region with its communities of Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok may be remote, but our communities are close-knit. Because we are close to our families, friends, and neighbours, Mr. Speaker, I know that many are struggling with matters of mental health. When we gathered in the House in February, I spoke about the terrible impacts of suicide on communities in my region. More broadly, Mr. Speaker, mental health needs in our communities continues to demand our attention. In the past, the Minister of Health and Social Services highlighted the various activities in Nunakput, including workshops, sharing circles, mental health first aid training, and work to raise awareness about the link between substance abuse and suicide risks. I commend this important work, Mr. Speaker, and I want it to continue. Life in the far north brings many benefits. We are able to live our traditional lifestyles, to pass on our cultural history and knowledge, and to enjoy our beautiful land each day. Yet, we are also faced with unique challenges, for example when people in my region don’t always have access to health services you would further south. Social workers, doctors, and counsellors are often based in another community, usually in Inuvik, and this can make it hard for residents to access the help they need or to build relationships with care workers. If you are part of a vulnerable group, Mr. Speaker, like children and youth or women who have experienced domestic violence, it only gets harder. Mr. Speaker, if anyone listening today has questions about mental health or would like to talk, the NWT Help Line could be called at 1-800-661-0844. You can also reach out to a trusted friend, family member, or an elder, or talk to a healthcare or social worker or an RCMP officer. I know that at times it feels hard, even impossible, in our regions where they are so remote and alone. We are all in this together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. It is time to mine the 2015 Environmental Audit for some issues to bring before this House. Members will recall that this audit is the legitimate, legally mandated way to improve integrated resource management systems for the Mackenzie Valley as established in constitutionally entrenched agreements. Today, it is another one of my favourite topics, participant funding. Canadians south of 60 degrees are entitled to participant funding in federal environmental assessment processes. If you live north of 60, you are treated as a second-class citizen. I appeared before a House of Commons committee in 1997 during its review of the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act and raised the issue of participant funding that Canadians south of 60 were entitled to, but the message fell on deaf ears at that time. Almost 20 years later, the same issue has been raised in successive environmental audits. Participant funding has been offered only three times for large environmental assessments: the Mackenzie Gas Project, Giant Mine, and Snap Lake. Here are a few nuggets from the 2015 Environmental Audit: “The MVRMA is based on a system of public participation and engagement. Participant funding is not steady or readily available. Participant funding was not addressed during the devolution process. Where the capacity does exist, Aboriginal groups and other participants indicated that simultaneous requests and regulated timelines and comment windows set by Boards impede their ability to provide meaningful input.” That is the end of the quote, Mr. Speaker. The audit recommended that “Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada and GNWT should assess public participation/consultation requirements and Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada should make a long-term funding commitment, including stress funding, to Aboriginal governments and organizations and other participants in the MVRMA regulatory processes.” We seem to be at an impasse, as shown by the response to the audit. Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada says participant funding will be considered on a case-by-case basis for future environmental assessments in the Northwest Territories. GNWT says that participant funding remains a federal responsibility. If we want people to have confidence in resource management decisions, they have to have the capacity and resources to participate. I will have questions for the Minister of Lands on the issue of participant funding for Northwest Territories residents to get involved and have confidence in environmental assessments in the Northwest Territories. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, residents of Fort McPherson are paying astronomical water bills as the hamlet tries to correct a difficult financial situation on the backs of homeowners. Mr. Speaker, I heard a number of concerns this week from constituents whose water services are being reduced to once a week. People were aware of the hamlet’s financial problem and how that impacts their bills, but now they are in arrears, Mr. Speaker. People who make an honest effort to make payments on time and provide clean and healthy homes for their families. Mr. Speaker, these people do not live in subsidized housing. Many of them are doing all they can to save water and be resourceful in the community where the cost of living is already high. My constituents believe that the situation is not the homeowners’ fault, nor their responsibility to get the hamlet out of its millions of dollars of debt. Mr. Speaker, the homeowners of Fort McPherson are hit the hardest, paying the high price for the inaction of government. The Department of Municipal and Community Affairs should have intervened in the hamlet’s mishandling of funds before the situation got completely out of control. Homeowners don’t understand how reducing water delivery to their homes is going to pay down the hamlet’s debt or why they should be forced into arrears themselves as the hamlet struggles to recover financially. Mr. Speaker, it is no wonder people fall into arrears when their water bills are easily $250 to $300 per month or more. Add to that heating fuel and firewood, groceries, gasoline, and caring for elders and children. People are borrowing from family members to pay their water bills, Mr. Speaker. Even when they have paid in full, some of them are still waiting for days to get water. Mr. Speaker, I urge the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs to look into the situation as soon as possible and work with the department and the community to find a solution before many more water tanks run dry. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one of the things I have learned since becoming an MLA is that if you want to judge the quality of the GNWT’s fiscal performance, you have to be tenacious. Even then, the answers may be elusive. Mr. Speaker, it doesn’t have to be that way. In the 2014-15 Budget Address, the Minister of Finance of that day said, “Our fiscal strategy is built on our commitment to adhering to our Fiscal Responsibility Policy and achieving the operating surpluses necessary to fund at least half of our planned capital investment.” He said the government would generate an operating surplus which would be used to fund multimillion-dollar capital investment programs. To follow the intention of the budget address and main estimates, we could then turn to the public accounts for that year. They are, of course, the government’s financial statements. Mr. Speaker, the public accounts are written by accountants for accountants. They are dense and difficult to understand, but they are also a key mechanism of government accountability. During the review of the public accounts, the current Minister was asked if the department had met the commitment for a budget surplus. It was difficult to get a straight answer from the Department of Finance. After more probing, the committee learned that the GNWT achieved an operating surplus, but less than the amount projected. In the same budget, infrastructure spending for that fiscal year, which should have been based on the Fiscal Responsibility Policy, in fact came in higher than that of the amount projected. This means that the GNWT overspent by millions on infrastructure in the fiscal year 2014-2015, and it exceeded its commitment to fund half of this from operating surpluses. There are two problems here, Mr. Speaker. The first is that it seems the government did not adhere to the Fiscal Responsibility Policy, one of the cornerstones of this government. Second, compounding that problem is the fact that this reality is not revealed in any plain way through the government’s financial statements. It has to be unearthed with effort. Mr. Speaker, this is not acceptable. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too, like my previous colleague, would like to recap what was done and accomplished over the last seven months here. In particular I think we, as newcomers, have participated in our first publication of this Assembly’s budget, and it has certainly been a learning process during the seven months. We look forward to moving ahead for the remaining term. In light of what we have achieved over the last several months, if we were to summarize and analyze each department, starting with the left-hand side. If we look at ECE… I might miss or not mention a few, but there have been a number of accomplishments over the last several months, including the publication of the Skills 4 Success, Mr. Speaker, and also the K to 12 document strategy. You have the housing federal support that have come in and housing strategy in place. It is a problematic department trying to keep everybody happy and the high operating costs of this part of the country. You have Health and Social Services there getting ready to initiate this new legislative authority, which I think would better cover the previous Assembly’s challenges in supporting and implementing the higher standard of healthcare. Then you have ITI, which has undertaken several initiatives on regulatory reform and analyzing the challenges that we need in preparation for implementing devoluted responsibilities. Then you have Finance, and Finance completed a challenging reduced budget to try and maintain satisfactory challenges for this side of the House, Members that represent high operating remote areas. Then you have Transportation with the many challenges, again, in a high operating cost area, having to build a road which would probably take double the cost compared to the same length dimensional road in, say, the province of British Columbia or Saskatchewan.
Member for Sahtu, your time for Member’s statements has expired.
I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.
---Unanimous consent granted
Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. The Department of Justice has a new department, or this whole government has a new department, with the Public Transparency, which we hope would ease some comfort in the outstanding land claims and the outstanding self-government initiatives. I think I tried to summarize the various departments and the challenges we have, and I look forward in moving ahead. I will look forward to rolling up our sleeves and getting down to business, so we can be mindful of the 60 to 70, 80 per cent unemployment, which I assure you we do have in these smaller communities. Faced with the reductions undertaken by this Assembly, I am quite certain we can probably satisfactorily say it is better to achieve supporting and creating two employment positions versus ten, although our target is for ten. But we are trying our best, Mr. Speaker. I thank everybody here today. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize Dana Edjericon, Archer Collinson, and Chinelle Besarra, who are Pages from our Range Lake riding. You do a wonderful job, and we are really appreciative of the service you provide to the Legislative Assembly. Thank you.
Masi. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I just want to welcome my aunt, Eileen Ruben, from Paulatuk; my daughter, Madeleine Nakimayak, from London; and my mom, Helen Nakimayak. Welcome. It is good to have you here. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Follow-up to my Member’s statement, I have a few questions for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. I would like to ask the Minister: how have MACA and the hamlet communicated Fort McPherson’s financial issues and the next steps to correct them to the residents of the community? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, we work with the community. We explain to them the situation that was in the community and some of the changes that had to be made, that we made some adjustment to some of the rates in the community. I can be glad to say that the financial situation in the community has improved. We are looking at reinstating the council and mayor in the fall. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, with earlier discussions with the Minister, I know that we are awaiting the audit to get things back to the way it used to be. I would like to ask the Minister what is being done to stabilize local water rates and other municipal services in the community.
Mr. Speaker, we are not interested in getting things back to the way they used to be because the way things used to be was they had a huge deficit in the community, and we are not interested in getting back into that situation. The adjustments that were made to the water rates in the community reflected the cost of doing business in the community. We had heard, when we had made the adjustment, that there was some concern with the elders’ rates, so we adjusted that. My understanding was the rates were adjusted again on April 1st. I think they may have even come down. But I will confirm that.
What I meant to say was the actual water rates that people paid before. Mr. Speaker, people in the community are paying twice as much as any other community in the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister agree to look into the most recent issues and help Fort McPherson manage its water services in a way that is affordable and adequate for the residents?
Mr. Speaker, as I said before, the water rates in the community reflect the cost of delivering water in the community. For a long time the community had very low water rates that were never adjusted and there was a bit of a sticker shock when they were adjusted, but I commend the community of McPherson. They stepped up to the plate and they realized that they were doing their part. We can review the whole thing, but to go back to the water rates that they had before would probably just put them back into the position that they were in before.
Masi. Member for Mackenzie Delta.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I know in the community meeting that was held this spring the department said that they would look into possibly getting water from the Peel River which would bring down the cost of delivering water in the community. Is the department looking at that for this coming fall? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, we will work with the new council and mayor once they’re elected if that is a priority of the community to change their water source and then we will look at that. We’ve had a number of communities across the Northwest Territories take advantage of the water treatment plant program and we can work with the community if it’s a desire of theirs. Because I take the Member’s point and I think I’ve heard from the community as well that I think there is a distance to drive to get water to the community, so we’ll explore that option with the new mayor and council when they get sworn in, and if it is a priority of theirs then we’ll try and advance it.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we heard the Minister of Transportation speak about saving $2 million on a contract in my riding. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister please tell us if he actually spoke to the two companies about the cost of them operating this contract as a negotiated contract? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Transportation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The short answer is no, as this was put out as a tendered process and it goes through procurement and they do their business. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
