Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I told you in my Member's statement today that, you know, we have a 60yearold elder that's being penalized from CERB in regards to housing and income support. I only have my housing minister here today, Mr. Speaker. What is the Minister, can she confirm that the government's position on counting CERB and other emergency pandemic payments as income for the residents of the public housing? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Nunakput. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for the question as well too. I'm quite surprised to hear this, that earlier to the pandemic when we were looking at the CERB payments they weren't to be calculated as earned income, and they should have not been calculated on the based rent. I'd encourage the Member to encourage his constituent to go back to the LHO and receive a rent reassessment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That's really good news because I will be reaching out to my constituent and getting him to do that.
Can the Minister advise the department and the residents in the public housing to make sure not only impacted during the tax season for the pandemic support payments, to make sure that the CERB is not being clawed back and being penalized elders being penalized in the housing system? It's not fair, Mr. Speaker, especially when we were told at the start that the Minister said that we weren't going to be taxed on it during the pandemic because it was monies needed because there was no work and we all had to stay home. So people took advantage of that, Mr. Speaker.
Can the Minister just make sure that the what are we doing with the tax season? When they bring in their income tax, can they get reassessed that day and to be go, I guess, back in regards to getting it reassessed for like five or six months or until they took that CERB payment and making sure they're not having to overpay? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thanks to the Member for the question. I strongly encourage all documentation that has been collected or has been received in applying for the CERB program provided by the federal government, that they provide those documents to the local housing authority and receive the rent assessment. And for the elder that the Member had spoken about, I'd like to follow up with him separately. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister for that. There's a lot of assessments that are going to be done being done right now as to not include the CERB payments. Were received last year, Mr. Speaker. The CERB payments and clawbacks that are happening to the residents right now, they're being penalized from Housing, that's what I've been told, and from the federal government and from us in regards to income support. Income support's even worse, Mr. Speaker, when you're cutting off people who have nothing already, that are relying on that to feed their families, Mr. Speaker. We need to get this sorted out, and I'm really looking forward to working with my Minister and my Premier to get this sorted out for the people in my riding and across the territory, because it's not only my riding that's going to get affected with CERB, it's going to be the whole territory in all 33 communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I've said that the CERB payments should have not been calculated into the rent calculations. But I will follow up with my department, making sure that this message gets down to our headquarters and right down to the local housing authorities. Should there be any confusion, I will follow up with the department. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, you know, the state of our housing across Nunakput is in we're in pretty poor shape. We can't keep up with the, to get them retrofitted. We can't keep up with the windows, the doors, the appliances that they have to pay the power to. We have to get on top of that, Mr. Speaker, especially the overcrowding that we are going through, right across the territory right now. Especially in my riding.
Mr. Speaker, what has the the Minister done in regards to overcrowding, to lessen overcrowding in Nunakput communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, I was quickly trying to grab we do have a hundred unit roll out that is happening within the lifetime of this government. My apologies as I was not able to pull up that document right away, but we do have some builds that are going to be delivered in Nunakput. And overcrowding, Mr. Speaker, is an issue that we have throughout the Northwest Territories but we do try to work with community governments in trying to address this issue throughout the North, and I do understand the Member's riding as well too, that there is limited amount of housing and in most communities, we are the only housing deliverer. But I will follow up with the Member as well too and look at further solutions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the finance minister tell us when the revamped RFP will be going out for the territorial fire centre? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to have the chance to talk about this project a little more. It is a priority for this government. And while we were under a process that would have put the RFP out, expecting that it would go under lease programs and therefore the operations budget, Mr. Speaker, we are looking now at instead making that part of the capital plan. So that's why there is a bit of a delay here, is that obviously our I shouldn't say obviously, the next capital plan won't be out until August. Typically you wouldn't issue the RFP until the capital plan has been approved in this House. And so that's the sort of timeline that we are operating under right now. I certainly can work with the Department of Environment and Climate Change to see where they are at in terms of advancing this project. As I've said, it was under one set of budgetary under one budget and now it's under the other so that's what is changing the timing of this, Mr. Speaker. But, and that's what delaying my ability to answer the question a little bit but I am certain that over the course of time there will be an answer to this question or this project certainly continues to be a priority. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister confirm that the supplementary appropriation bill will be brought into the House before the end of the August session that will ensure the continuation of the procurement process for the fire centre? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member has been a forceful advocate for this project and certainly I think has convinced many of my colleagues as to its essential nature which is why it was at the place it was at already with the procurement. And although the first way that we were going to go about it as an operations budget item has changed and looking at it as a capital budget, the priority place of it hasn't changed. Again, as I've said, at this point the RFP normally wouldn't issue until the approval of the budget formally in the House even though the project might remain on the plan. And so that's the state that we are in right now. And again, I can appreciate why there is some uncertainty in that regard because the public doesn't see the longterm plans, but I am certainly comfortable to say that it does remain part of that plan.
As I have said, and as I have committed to the Member, I will continue to keep her updated in a way that we are able to do here a little bit differently than what we might do in terms of publishing all of those plans for the public. So we are looking forward to seeing this on the next round for the Environment and Climate Change I am not used to saying that one yet, ECC's upcoming capital plans. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister clarify if the new fire centre, once complete, will be a leased building to a third party or will it be a governmentowned building? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, so again on this front, the Member for Thebacha, as I have said, has been a helpful, very helpful actually, in moving this project along, giving us some opportunities to discuss and engage best paths forward. There was a time where the thought was to put in as a leased building and that was the initial RFP. When that process didn't bear fruit, the thought now is to move it into a governmentowned building which would mean that the RFP would simply be for construction. And that, again until we will wait I think, at this point, to see how the capital estimates come out, the next round coming out, which do come out in August and with a look to be approved in August and that should provide some greater certainty to the community around the process moving forward hopefully. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Thebacha.
Mr. Speaker, does the Minister have an estimated timeline for when construction of the new territorial fire centre will begin? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So actual shovels in the ground will depend on when the capital estimates are approved and then how those estimates and how the money that's appropriated goes through. But again, with the fact that we do approve our capital estimates early on an election year, we approve them in August, and depending on the way that comes out, I certainly don't want to presume any votes or any conclusions of that process, but as that process moves forward, Mr. Speaker, we will see what the next round of capital projects are, where they are at, and have a good opportunity at that point to flesh out the timelines associated with those approved projects. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are on the northern resident travel deduction for the Minister of Finance. And, Mr. Speaker, depending on the answers, I might be able to give the Minister a new portfolio, the Minister of Dragon Slaying.
So can the Minister tell us whether she is aware of the discrepancies between the recently published Canada Revenue Agency figures and those published by Canadian North, the one carrier that maintains regular service from Yellowknife to Edmonton? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Minister responsible for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am very motivated now to answer these questions the right way. Mr. Speaker, I certainly am aware of the recently published guidelines and certainly aware that there are some discrepancies around that. One thing that I want to note, Mr. Speaker, it's been alerted to me by the department actually that this is a pilot project, and I hope that's going to give me some openings to give some positive responses of where we might go, because pilot projects mean that they are ripe for some change. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I could probably make a pun there about pilots and planes and tax deductions. I won't go there, Mr. Speaker, but when I raised this issue of the lack of figures for the lowest northern airfare from CRA, our Minister of Finance committed to talk to her territorial colleagues in the Yukon and Nunavut in February 2021. So can the Minister confirm whether those discussions ever took place and whether there was any followup action? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is a point of frustration for many residents and certainly for not only the MLA but me as well. And I can confirm that I discussed this with my other territorial finance colleagues, that we did jointly raise the issue. I'd like to think in fact that that may be why there is now a pilot project, is that we have finally raised issue to a place that it received the attention that it required. Now, that doesn't mean that those to whom we raised it get it right the first time but, again, Mr. Speaker, we will be certainly following up again, and finance officials will be speaking with their folks their colleagues in the federal department, raising with them the challenges we are seeing and hopefully getting the pilot right before it becomes a final project. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. I described this longstanding problem as a dragon that has been around since 1987 where Northerners have been subjected to unnecessary, and in some cases unfair, audits. So can the Minister tell us whether she has written a letter with other finance Ministers from northern territories on this, and if so, could she table that letter in the House? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, prior to the release of Budget 2022 by the federal government, the three territories did write on some shared priorities. I would be certainly happy to share that with my colleagues. I can't share letters penned by others without their confirmation but certainly can go to MLAs. With respect specifically to the issue around the airfares, whether it was in that letter or another, I will double check. Whether we raised directly at the finance Ministers', I can confirm with my notes.
With respect to this pilot project, again I am happy to look again at whether or not this is something we want to bring to the level of being raised on its own. I suspect there is a few issues that we may want to raise but I certainly can look to doing that. Again, Mr. Speaker, I don’t want to overemphasize the fact of it being a pilot project. I only want to emphasize that this is a time where if the project's not working, if the way that they are doing now is not working, it's an opportunity for residents to provide feedback, whether that's direct to the federal government or to an MLA who may want to pass that on through to the federal government, to our MP, probably best place to raise that. You know, certainly I would think they want to get this right. I have sympathy, the airline prices change but they have gotten this far, let's get them them over the line to be that much better. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. No, there's a lot of good stuff there. I get her passion on this, and I too want us to get over the finish line.
But there's one other outstanding issue when it comes to northern residents tax deduction. It's the lack of indexing of the northern, the residency amount. I believe it has only ever been raised once in 36 years. So can the Minister tell us what has been done to fix this problem for northern taxpayers? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the Member and I are in full agreement on this particular issue. It's true. Mr. Speaker, this is a bee in our bonnet. I have asked about this one as well. I have certainly raised this one. I know certainly at the table, if not in letters or both. I was able to confirm with our department, indexing has not gone, even though not indexed, the deduction amount went up 1991, 2008, 2016, but incrementally increasing it in this way is not effective, it is not reflective, it doesn't keep up with inflation. I think I am certainly, again, preaching to the choir here with respect to this question. The challenge I am running into is that it is a national program. The northern residents deduction is not only for territorial residents, it is not only for the Northwest Territories, it does impact the situation facing northern residents in provinces. And while I don't have a crystal ball into what happens with the federal government, it is our sense that that is creating perhaps some of their challenge. I don't think we are done with this. I don't think it is not worth raising. It has such a tremendous impact on the territories as an attractive feature for us, as a way to increase labour market residents, so many reasons. So I am not done with it, Mr. Speaker. Just haven't quite solved this one yet. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, statistics going back to 1985, when the native employment policy was first used, confirms that the affirmative action policy has done little to move the needle beyond the 30 percent Indigenous participation in the public sector.
Mr. Speaker, the current definition of Indigenous person in the current affirmative action policy, in part, includes Aboriginal persons resident at birth pursuant to section 23 of the Vital Statistics Act, and any Canadian Aboriginal persons who have lived more than half their life in the Northwest Territories. Now this group is being considered for removal from the definition.
Mr. Speaker, will the Minister of Finance confirm that this is being done intentionally or was it an oversight, as it impacts a high number of Indigenous people in Hay River and is the Minister willing to continue using the current definition of Indigenous Aboriginal persons in any future policy revision? Thank you.
Thank you Member for Hay River South. Minister for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the current language is still outdated. It is referencing Aboriginal persons, it is very old, and so that's where it is for that reason that we are looking for a new definition, not certainly to exclude people. The new proposed definition is around prioritizing descendents of the Dene, Inuit or Metis people who are indigenous to the present boundaries of the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, I have had some conversations with the Member from Hay River around this and was surprised as I started to hear from him, from his constituents, about their concerns. Because it certainly is not necessarily the interpretation, and therefore certainly not intentional, that the new proposal should be exclusive or exclusionary of members of Inuit or Dene or Indigenous peoples from the Northwest Territories. So I acknowledge that there needs to be some refinement around the definitions to be more clear and that is the process that we are in now, is to get exactly this kind of feedback so that the definition can be clear and appropriate to the Indigenous people of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Indigenous representation of public sector is at an all time low right now, at around the 29 percent. Can the Minister tell me what may be contributing to this as we have had a policy in place for some 30 plus years? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I firstly want to say that in no way do I want to simplify the issue and while I can give some responses from the perspective of the hiring department, it's an answer that does look back to everything starting from maternal health to education to mental wellness that the more people are ready, able, willing to work, trained to work and healthy to work, then there's more people available to be hired. So this is a responsibility for all of government to ensure that we are all doing those things to have to achieve those goals. As the hiring department for the public service, Mr. Speaker, that too, there's a number of things that we are looking at doing, looking at job descriptions, ensuring that they are not overinflated and ensuring that they consider equivalencies that may reflect the skills and the abilities of people in the Northwest Territories and what we actually need to accomplish with the jobs that we have, and to ensure that we are looking past internal biases, that we are looking past if there is a cultural awareness and cultural safety which training, again, is now mandatory. Everything we can do to change the mindset, often unconscious and often unaware, of who it is that we have in our roles and what we need. So, again, it's saying I didn't want to oversimplify and now I'm going to get a bit long. I will stop there, Mr. Speaker, just to say there is a number of fronts on which we are trying to tackle the issue. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, Indigenous representation of public sector in 13 communities in declining. Will the Minister tell me how will the department turn this around? Would decentralization of some positions be part of the solution? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are a number of programs, and just in coming up to the last question before this, what are we doing this to solve and what are some of the challenges. To the extent that training and opportunity is a challenge, there is a number of programs now, the Indigenous Recruitment and Retention Program, there's the Gateway Program, the internship program, student programs, secondment programs. All of those are opportunities to increase our presence within smaller communities and to increase awareness of the opportunities to work with the GNWT.
Another thing that I'd mention though, Mr. Speaker, we do have this was again part of the remote work policy that was introduced. It would provide some opportunity to have people working not only in a headquarters or regional place but to be doing that work remotely. We saw in COVID that it's possible. It takes a bit of getting used to as a manager. It may be, we realize that. We want to work with our superiors and managers so that they can better supervise people to give them those opportunities for remote work, where appropriate, where operationally allowed.
So a number of things, again, happening all within the space of a last couple of years and I am hoping that they will start to grow fruit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Hay River South.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, one bright spot, if we can see it as that, is that Indigenous representation in senior management has reached its highest level since 2013 and currently stands at a whopping 19.7 percent. Can the Minister tell me what may have contributed to this little increase and can we expect to see exponential increases going forward? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate calling it a bright spot. I think that's the fourth question so maybe I am getting a bit of an easy going there. I recognize that 19.7 is not really a bright spot, at least it's on the right direction though. Mr. Speaker, I can say that one thing that was launched 2018, and finally actually got significant up gait in 2019 and 2020, is the Indigenous Development Training Program, previously known as Indigenous Management Development Program. It's an important change in terminology to go from saying management to development because it doesn't mean only for managers and it doesn't mean only to become a manager. It means it's an opportunity for someone who wants to increase their career skills to move up in seniority, in whatever path that might be, that they can do so. And it is certainly our hope that that program will continue to the extent that we expect that it has been part of the reason for this, that people will continue to apply for it and not see it and see that it applies to them, that it applies to any public servant who wants to increase their skills. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My first set of questions is for ENR. I'm going to start with the foxes, Mr. Speaker. That's where the rabies are most present, and then they get into dogs, and then they get into humans. So can the Minister of ENR just tell us whether the department is presently concerned with their rabies outbreak in the current fox Arctic Fox population. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Member for the questions. Rabies, as the Member said, is a natural occurrence occurring, and it's always present in Arctic Foxes in northern Canada, particularly above the treeline. The disease goes through cycles, and more cases seen in some years. We have more cases in the BeauDel this year and a case in the Sahtu. ENR regularly monitors rabies in wildlife across the NWT and will continue to track numbers of cases where they occur if rabies occur. Cases are confirmed near communities or in domestic animals; ENR provides information and support to the Department of Health and Social Services to avoid people being exposed to the disease. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
