Masi. Oral questions. Member for Hay River North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My final question. I won't put the Minister on the spot by asking him to justify why the manager of fisheries and agriculture is in Yellowknife. We know it can't be justified. So can I get the Minister to not just look into moving this position? It doesn't even need to be looked into. Can we just have this position moved to where it logically should be, in Hay River? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This manager position is located in Yellowknife. Its duties are a pan-territorial responsibility and it's best fit here in the ITI headquarters, and we have no plans on moving this position to Hay River.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier I spoke about youth in small communities, and I have a couple of questions for the Minister responsible for Youth. Mr. Speaker, my first question to the Minister is: can the Minister give an outline of GNWT-led programs that currently and specifically serve youth in our small and remote communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister responsible for Youth.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The government does support a lot of youth initiatives right across all departments within the governments. MACA, obviously, is one of the bigger supporters in the youth program. We feel that all our programs address the needs of youth across the Northwest Territories, right into our smallest communities. We have the NWT Youth Ambassadors Program, which has been very successful. Both my departments and the Department of MACA work together to support and fund the Northern Youth Abroad Program.
We have various programs that communities can access funding. As I mentioned, we have programs right across the board, ENR, MACA, Health and Social Services. They have the Take a Kid Trapping Program; as well, we have some food, breakfast programs in the schools that we partner up with the Department of Health and Social Services as well as MACA. We can provide a list to the Member with those kinds of application forms. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate the response. My final question is: when is the next deadline for the Youth Contributions Program, which funds communityled projects, and how can organizations apply?
As mentioned, there are a lot of applications right across the board. The Youth Contributions is one that's run through MACA, and any community can access that program. Just apply to the regional office. I encourage all small communities that want to apply to that program to apply as soon as possible in the new fiscal year, because I believe it is on a firstcome, firstserved basis.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday, my colleague from Hay River North was asking the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment about junior kindergarten, and we seem to have some differences of opinion. I've heard 3.1. Now I hear from the government it's 2.7. So is junior kindergarten truly fully funded by this government? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I do realize that I could have been a little bit clearer in my answers to questions on junior kindergarten yesterday. I do apologize for that.
Junior kindergarten is expected to cost $5.1 million to implement. The additional $2.7 million that was announced, along with the original investment of $1.5 million, plus $900,000 that we've identified internally within the department, will cover the implementation costs. We are committed to continue working with the superintendents and the District Education Councils towards the smooth implementation of junior kindergarten. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I thank the Minister for his answer. Yesterday, we talked about a 2 per cent that the divisional boards have to come up with. So if the government is fully funding this program at $5.1 million, why are they asking the divisional boards to come up with 2 per cent?
Yes, under the original plan for funding junior kindergarten, we had asked education authorities to cover $2.76 million through a reallocation of existing funding that was provided, which was about 1.76 per cent. This amount will now be covered by the $2.7 million in new funding that was announced yesterday.
I thank the Minister for his answer. If I wasn't confused before, I think I'm a little bit confused now. So are we asking the school boards to provide 2 per cent, or are we not asking them to provide 2 per cent for this junior kindergarten?
I do believe I just answered that question, but the department is currently working with the education authority superintendents to determine how to allocate the additional funding.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
Okay, thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Minister for the clarification. So the government is actually not funding it completely. We're working with the divisional boards to find the money, so it's not fully funded by the Government of the Northwest Territories unless it's from the funding that exists, that we get right now.
So yesterday the Minister was talking about that they have to find it from the surplus of these educational boards. Can this Minister verify that each school board has a surplus that they can actually find to help fund this 1.76 per cent funding? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just for clarification, we are fully funding implementation of junior kindergarten. The Member asked questions about the surplus situation. Although the DECs across the territory have a combined surplus of $10 million, the Member's riding, the Deh Cho DEC, is currently in an accumulated deficit position as a result of onetime costs such as termination benefits and employee removals. The department is working with the DDEC to come up with a plan to recover that deficit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Premier on a carbon pricing scheme for the Northwest Territories. Can the Premier explain his change in position from opposing carbon pricing made in June 2016 to when he signed the Northwest Territories onto the PanCanadian Framework on Climate Change in December 2016? Merci, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Honourable Premier.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's interesting. The Member and the “MLA for centralization” were talking about higher carbon taxes. We didn't change our position. We weren't just going to roll over and let the federal government impose carbon pricing willynilly. We're here to look after the best interests of the people of the Northwest Territories, so we felt that we negotiated a better position for our territory when it comes to carbon taxes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate the response from the Premier, but I guess the facts speak for themselves. He signed onto a news release that said he opposes a carbon pricing scheme, and then in December he signs onto a national agreement that says it's okay.
I guess I'd like to know precisely what is Cabinet doing to develop carbon tax for the Northwest Territories, or will we wait for Ottawa to impose something?
Our government is doing some significant research, looking at the various carbon pricing mechanisms that have been imposed by or have been proposed by the federal government. We are looking to see what kind of models are out there. We are doing modelling to see how it could work. As I've said many times in this House, we have gone out to consult with the people of the Northwest Territories with regard to a new climate change strategy, a new energy strategy. If the Member would prefer to have us impose one on the people of the Northwest Territories, from his Member's statement, that appeared to be so. We are going and having these different consultations, and we will work with the Government of Canada to make sure that we all understand how a carbon price or carbon tax would affect the people of the Northwest Territories before we implement one.
So let's talk about imposing things. I was at the consultation session here in Yellowknife. A carbon tax wasn't even mentioned there, so I'm not sure who the Premier is consulting because he's certainly not consulting with this side of the House or the residents of the Northwest Territories on a carbon tax.
I guess I'd like to know whether the Premier has actually asked the federal government to ensure that any carbon tax revenues collected here will not adversely impact our territory formula funding, and what was the response from the federal government?
We are consulting with the people of the Northwest Territories, and I can send the schedule of all of the consultations to the Member. I have offered and written to committee offering a briefing. I expect that there will be briefings on it. The request was for a written briefing earlier. We provided that. We are also offering a briefing. The Government of Canada, the first question that we raised was we didn't want it to affect our formula financing. That was one of our conditions for signing on. They reassured us it would not impact us on formula financing. Certainly, they also confirmed that, whatever carbon pricing mechanism would be in place, all of the revenues would stay in the Territories and would be spent in the Territories.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the response from the Premier. I think we are getting somewhere now. I am glad to hear that he has assurances and he has said now in this House that any carbon pricing scheme is not going to affect our territorial formula funding. That is a good thing. I guess I am really wondering what the schedule, then, is and whether there is an intention to actually work with this side of the House in developing this carbon pricing scheme, because I haven't seen anything. I went to one of the consultation sessions. The Premier seems to think I am not even aware of them. I actually went to the one in Yellowknife. The words "carbon tax" weren't even there. I would like to know from the Premier: is there actually a schedule? When does he expect to report back and work with this side of the House in terms of developing a proper carbon tax system for the Northwest Territories? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I guess I will have to clarify what actually happened at the consultation. I was hearing that those who attended from Yellowknife were supportive of a carbon tax, and similarly in Fort Smith. I will have to clarify what exactly came out at those meetings. As I have said, we have written to committee and offered a briefing. At that time, I see it as a start of developing. We will have the results of the consultations by that time.
The Government of Canada has indicated that their federal budget will be out early in February, so I expect probably within the next week or so we can expect more details on carbon pricing. Certainly, we know that the national standard is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent over 2005 levels. As a government, we have already done that. With the moratorium on oil and gas, it certainly would make our job a lot easier. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today my question is for the Minister of Transportation. Can the Minister please provide the status of the federal application for the construction of the Mackenzie Valley Highway between Fort Wrigley and Norman Wells? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Transportation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Government of the Northwest Territories submitted a business case to the federal government under the National Infrastructure Fund and the New Building Canada Plan for $700 million. The federal government reviewed the business case, but it remains temporarily suspended depending on how the long-term plan for infrastructure money is going to be. We look forward to what the federal government has to say on the budget coming forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thanks to the Minister for that response here; and in the previous, our Premier mentioned that the budget would come out in another two weeks. Mr. Speaker, the Minister noted in his response that the funding submission for the Mackenzie Valley Highway still remains suspended. What is the Department of Transportation doing to advance this project in the meantime?
The department is working to advance the next priority phase of the project, the Bear River Bridge. In particular, the department is conducting a review of the original design that was done in 2005. What we want to do is make sure it is compliant with current codes and standards in addition to the funding that was received earlier in the new year. We are working on the Canyon Creek project to move that along. This project will bring training and experience gained by the Sahtu residents that will be used towards the next phase of the construction of the Mackenzie Valley Highway.
The BRB, or the Bear River Bridge, as I recall was tendered procured in 2006. Now the Minister is saying 2005. I am a bit confused.
My question is, I understand the department, having mentioned the Bear River Bridge, in preparation for the Bear River Bridge, going back to 2006 and the procurement, there were some materials purchased and some materials produced, more specifically a stockpile south of Tulita for the mixture of concrete, Mr. Speaker. Since the stockpile of gravel that has been destined to be used for the Bear River Bridge project, but right now, while there is no work taking place there, since the location of this pit is near Tulita and the gravel is not being used, I am wondering if the material can be made available to the community of Tulita who does not have a source year-round and a supply for projects for the community.
To the 2005 and 2006 discrepancy, I believe 2005 is when the design was done for the bridge. Just to clarify that.
After that was shortly done, there was approximately 3,700 cubic metres of granular that was produced for the bridge near Tulita. That particular product is made for a specific use. It is made for high-strength concrete for when we go ahead and proceed with the building of the Great Bear River Bridge. It is not suitable for road construction or paths or that type of use within the community. I do suggest that the Member get a hold of our superintendent in Fort Simpson and ask him how we can support him to find the source of gravel for the community needs.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister for that response. It will be particularly good news to the community of Tulita. Tulita, I must say, is the only Sahtu community that does not have year-round gravel. We have not seen, at the community level, expansions of subdivisions or roads or paths. The material has to be imported at a very costly price, I must add. My last question, Mr. Speaker, is: can the Minister also mention and provide to the House here the status of the Canyon Creek all-season road, and also mention when will construction start on that particular project now that financing is secured? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Construction of the Canyon Creek all-season road access, we are expecting it to begin in March of this year, 2017. This is expected to be completed by October of 2018. We are very glad to announce this project. It is going to bring significant employment to the region, and training, as I said in my earlier comments. It is going to bring approximately 50 jobs to the region and help with the training aspect of a number of individuals. We contributed to our mandate working forward. Thank you for that, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Mackenzie Delta.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in follow-up to my Member's statement earlier today, I have a few questions to the Minister of the Housing Corporation. I would like to ask the Minister: can the Minister provide an update on the disposal of old housing units in the Mackenzie Delta? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.
