Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are for the Minister of Finance.
Mr. Speaker, for the second year in a row, Hay River and K'atlodeeche First Nation residents have been hit with severe disasters and forced to evacuate as we have heard much of today. Residents who work for the GNWT, but can't work remotely, are being asked to use vacation leave, special leave, or even leave without pay during this time. This is unacceptable, Mr. Speaker. Mandatory evacuation should not be made to take away from people's family and medical needs, mental health breaks, or vacation leave. The GNWT must reinstate these banks to GNWT employees who evacuated from Hay River or K'atlodeeche First Nation. So I'm wondering if the Minister can make that commitment here today. Thank you.
Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister responsible for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, emergency leave is available to public servants during an evacuation. This is paid leave. It does not draw down from other leave banks. And if an employee is being asked to take some other form of leave, Mr. Speaker, they should be discussing that with their supervisor or raising it in appropriate ways. If necessary, it come through MLA, it can come to me, but they should be on emergency leave with pay. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate the Minister stating that because I had the privilege of having dinner with people from Hay River last night, and this was not the information that they were receiving from their supervisors. So I think that was really important information from the Minister, and I appreciate that.
Mr. Speaker, I'm wondering if the emergency leave that is afforded to public servants is equal to the number of days that they were under mandatory evacuation. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, if you're on emergency leave, if you're subject to an evacuation order, you can remain on emergency leave and it won't draw down, again as I said, on your banks.
Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge there are public servants who are based within the community that is under evacuation who are working, who are working remotely, and I just want to acknowledge that we I'm conscious of the fact that they are doing so under great strain when things are more than disruptive in their lives. So wanting to also extend that while these emergency leave banks are available, I certainly want to extend my appreciation for those that have been called to continue to work under circumstances that are very difficult, whether remote or otherwise. But certainly to be very clear, again, there are different types of leave. And even when the evacuation order is lifted, it may well be that some people cannot yet return to their homes or to their communities. There are those who can't return right now maybe under health circumstances, back to Hay River in the circumstance. And, again, they can be looking at what types of leave are appropriate, whether emergency leave is still appropriate or whether special leave or an annual leave is appropriate. But, again, at that point, Mr. Speaker, once the evacuation order is fully lifted, that may change but right now, if they can't go back, they should be speaking to a supervisor to ensure that they're being appropriately accommodated. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to ask that the Minister also and, you know, the GNWT's very good at using Bear Net leave, and as MLAs get Bear Net over here, and I'd like to ask that this information be added to an upcoming Bear Net circulation as well.
Mr. Speaker, GNWT employees are not the only NWT workers impact the by severe disasters. People who are selfemployed or work for small and medium business who do not have billable or hours worked are going weeks without pay sometimes during these mandatory evacuations that are happening. We heard here earlier today from the Deputy Premier that the GNWT will provide $750 onetime payments to residents. When we look to the south and what's happening in Alberta, Alberta residents are receiving $1,250 per adult and $550 per dependent child when they go seven days of a mandatory evacuation.
One of the concerns that I have is that there is such a high cost of living in the Northwest Territories, and quite often people are evacuated for a week at a time. And to expect residents to be able to pay their bills at even one week is 25 percent of your monthly income. So I'm wondering if, first off, if the Minister is looking at raising that amount to something that is more reflective of the cost of living in the territory; and second, why they have that caveat of seven days of evacuation? Because missing even one or two days of pay is extreme for people in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can't make everybody whole. The Government of the Northwest Territories can't make everybody whole. I think more several of my colleagues have already spoken about how heartbreaking this is, to hear on late Sunday night that this community was being evacuated yet again. Mr. Speaker, my first thoughts were to children who were being woken up in the middle of the night to have to leave their houses again. So, you know, it's not for lack of awareness of how tremendously difficult this must be to the extent that someone who is not experiencing it can even pretend to actually be able to say that we know someone feels when we're not in those shoes.
So, Mr. Speaker, no relief program that we ever come out with is likely going to be one that is completely satisfactory, that makes anyone whole and that totally fixes every single need that anyone has. I know that. I'm aware of it. If we're going to compare ourselves to Alberta, Alberta has some billion-dollar surplus; we do not have a surplus, we continue to run a deficit. We have an operating surplus that offsets some of the debt we take on for our capital plan. So that said, we're trying to find gaps. I know the United Way right now has over $500,000. They've been trying to get that money out the door. We're looking at ways that we can better support them going forward so that process can be made more easy, that that process could be more accessible. It's a nonprofit, I certainly don't want to put a burden on them but there's a lot of money there that we want to be able to support them going forward. So we're having that conversation. And now we're looking at what other gaps we can fill.
We've looked at the number of employees who are under income assistance, they received their income assistance emergency funds and continue to receive income assistance, looked at who what the employment demographics are, who are GNWT public servants, again emphasizing they are on emergency leave, they don't have to draw down their banks. So trying to make do with the resources that we have, with the public dollars that we have available to us to try to fill some gaps, and that's how we landed on the program that we have here to try to fill up for anyone that is seeing an income disruption that they can have a topup, take a bit of the pressure off for them, and that has been the goal that we've tried to achieve. We landed on the $750 looking at what the emergency funds that are provided to income assistance clients, so we're trying to be fair across the board to the different types of programs available. That's how we landed on that one, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I hear the empathy from the Minister and I also hear the acknowledgement from Ministers and Members on kind of the cumulative impacts of having to evacuate, as the MLA for Hay River North said earlier during their Member's statement, two, three, four consecutive years here, going on with disasters from really, from the impacts of climate change and so we're just going to continue to see more of them. But we also heard the MLA for Hay River North today during their Member's statement speaks about how the fire is only six kilometres away right now, and so people may very well return home for a few days and be evacuated again. So my next question, and my last question for the Minister, is if that is the case and they are reevacuated to Yellowknife, will they, again, be eligible for that subsidy if the evacuation order lasts another seven plus days? Thank you.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the minute there's another evacuation, all of the things start to happen again. The GNWT provides firstly, obviously, the cost of fighting the fire and, again, accommodations to all those who have been doing so tirelessly, 24/7 now for over a week. Mr. Speaker, we also will be providing again emergency transportation, emergency sheltering, emergency relief in terms of food, toiletries, some basic necessities. And perhaps what we now observed is that a lot of people don't want to come to Yellowknife. I appreciate that. We do now have also the community back the community government hosting grant through MACA to try to support communities around the lake who have been stepping up and stepping in. So that support will be available again. And, Mr. Speaker, any community that is affected by a seven day or longer order will now be subject to this policy. That again is part of trying to get you know, it's a policy that was developed in the space of days by public servants who are also being asked to address some of the other needs and emergencies. We've done our best to try to make it clear, accessible and, Mr. Speaker, it'll be available going forward. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, two days ago on May 23rd, I went to NorthwesTel which is owned by Bell in the Northwest Territories, to help a Hay River evacuee pay for their phone bill because it was going to be cut off. NorthwesTel told me they don't do Bell payments there even though they are owned by Bell. They told me I had to go to the bank. This is a very important issue, especially in light of the various natural disaster emergencies that the NWT has experienced in recent days and years. Does the Minister agree that this is not okay? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I certainly feel for any residents right now that are, you know, anywhere in the South Slave dealing with some variety of natural disasters or any other personal circumstances. I'm not going to be in a position to speak to what whether or not NorthwesTel and Bell need to sort out their billing in a different way. I can certainly raise it to the counterparts at NorthwesTel that I do meet with on occasion and see if there is a path forward or, you know, perhaps try to support provide us some information about online banking opportunities. And if that's in, you know, some supports there for this person, if they're a business they may be able to access some help in terms of getting themselves set up online. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, in addition to natural disaster emergencies, there's also a major concern about the lack of cellphone infrastructure on all NWT highways. Between Fort Smith and Hay River, there are no cell services. Between Behchoko and Yellowknife, there are no cellphone services. And in the last two weeks, there have been at least two trafficrelated fatalities near Enterprise and Behchoko. So if there were broader cellphone services across the NWT, there is a chance that those tragedies could have been prevented. Does the Minister agree? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I think we're on a slightly different line right now than paying bills. But, Mr. Speaker, with respect to telecommunication services across highways, that, again, is one where all of Canada and all of rural and remote Canada struggles with this. I have certainly looked at many a map that shows the coverage for telecommunications. But we're not alone. And, in fact, northern parts of many provinces are in a more dire circumstances than what we are in terms of their demographics and populations that are affected. So as far as whether it would have prevented a highway accident, Mr. Speaker, that is probably a question that I'd have to go back to the RCMP about. I don't know if cell service would have prevented an accident necessarily. No doubt having access to cellular services can access emergency services more quickly, Mr. Speaker. And that, again, is something where we continue to advocate to the federal government to ensure that they're making a pathway available for funding for communities that want to try to have that kind of infrastructure. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, could the Minister tell us what NorthwesTel's master plan is for addressing some of these issues? Have they shared any plans with you or Cabinet and not with all of us? NorthwesTel and Bell need to start being accountable. Does the Minister agree? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do meet with NorthwesTel periodically and they and frequently well, and the purpose of those meetings is to get an update on achieving 50/10. That is their mandate through CRTC that they are to be providing the availability of 50/10, even if not with the affordability that I also continue to advocate where availability doesn't do much if we can't afford it.
Mr. Speaker, I have on those occasions asked them and encouraged them to also reach out to standing committees to make their presentations available. I will certainly follow up to ensure that they are reaching out. I think this is information that would be a benefit to all Members in the House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Thebacha.
Mr. Speaker, the master plan and accountability issues of NorthwesTel must be shared with all Members of the Legislative Assembly, and it should include how they're going to lower their rates and create more choices. In this day and age, it is extremely important that the people of the NWT remain connected with the rest of the world via modern technology with the internet and phone services. Does the Minister agree with that? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the digital economy is most certainly the way of the future right now in many respects; it's upon us. It provides tremendous opportunities, and I would like nothing better than to see some of the many small businesses, artisans, crafts multiple sectors could benefit from better access to the internet, tourism, tourism providers, so on and so forth. There are programs at BDIC with ADAPT to try to get businesses online. There hopefully now there's going to be the new subsidy that I mentioned earlier coming available for residents. So, again, I think and this is where the Member and I are likely in agreement. And, Mr. Speaker, again, I will, again, confirm and follow up with NorthwesTel and encourage them to meet with Regular Members. It is information that we should all have. The more we're all talking about the same goal, the more we could hopefully achieve it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Merci, Monsieur le President.
My questions are for the Minister of Finance. The Government of the Northwest Territories is increasingly using publicprivate partnerships or P3 financing for large capital projects. P3 project accounting and disclosure is an area that continues to evolve. To better understand what P3 projects the GNWT has initiated, their costs and impacts on public financing, please provide a list and a brief description of all P3 projects undertaken by the GNWT with partners for each P3 project and:
1. The original projected capital costs, operating costs, debt servicing costs, and any projected revenues and associated timelines for each project at the time of their approval by Cabinet for the last ten fiscal years;
2. The annual actual capital, operating costs, debt servicing costs and revenues for each P3 project for each of the last ten fiscal years;
3. The P3 costs (capital, operating and debt servicing) and revenues as a percentage of the main estimates and capital estimates for each project during each of the last ten fiscal years; and
4. Whether there is any analysis conducted on the impacts of P3 projects on public financing, particularly programs and services, and whether any of this analysis is publicly disclosed.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your committee would like to report on its consideration of Bill 79, An Act to Amend the Judicature Act.
Bill 79 received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on March 29th, 2023, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review. The standing committee held a public hearing on May 10th, 2023, and completed its clausebyclause review of the bill with the Minister of Justice on May 24th, 2023.
Mr. Speaker, the committee reports that Bill 79, An Act to Amend the Judicature Act, is ready for consideration in Committee of the Whole. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Impacts of COVID19 on Education. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Tabling of documents. Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: Annual Report 20222023 Office of the Regulator of Oil and Gas Operations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Tabling of documents. Member for Thebacha.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the 2023 Independent Auditor's Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Parliament of Canada on Connectivity in Rural and Remote Areas. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Monday, May 29th, 2023, I will move the following motion:
Now therefore I move, seconded by the Honourable Member for Sahtu, that the Legislative Assembly recommends the appointment of Mr. Toby Kruger as law clerk and Ms. Sandra Mackenzie as deputy law clerk as recommended by the Board of Management;
And further, that the Speaker be authorized to communicate the effective date of the appointment to the Commissioner.
And, Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time, I will be seeking unanimous consent to deal with this motion today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to deal with the motion I gave notice of earlier today.
Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The Member is seeking unanimous consent to deal with a motion today. Are there any nays? There are no nays.
Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Appointment of Law Clerk and Deputy Law Clerk.
WHEREAS section 54(3) of the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act provides that the Commissioner, on the recommendation of the Board of Management, approve by motion of the Legislative Assembly, shall appoint a law clerk;
AND WHEREAS the current law clerk to the Assembly, Ms. Sheila MacPherson, has been appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories after more than 25 years of outstanding service and dedication to the Assembly;
AND WHEREAS Members of this Legislative Assembly wish to publicly recognize and thank Ms. MacPherson for her service;
AND WHEREAS Mr. Toby Kruger has served as deputy law clerk to the Assembly;
AND WHEREAS the Board of Management has passed a motion recommending the appointment of Mr. Toby Kruger as law clerk and the appointment of Ms. Sandra Mackenzie as deputy law clerk.
AND THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the Honourable Member for Sahtu, that the Legislative Assembly recommends the appointment of Mr. Toby Kruger as law clerk and Ms. Sandra Mackenzie as deputy law clerk as recommended by the Board of Management;
AND FURTHER, that the Speaker be authorized to communicate the effective date of appointment to the Commissioner.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. The motion is in order. To the motion?
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? Any abstentions? The motion is carried. Thank you.
Carried
