Robert Hawkins

Thank you. Well, the Minister can keep repeating I have an opinion and that’s fine. I mean, the public sees it for what it is.

My next question for the Minister is: Who writes his Minister’s statements when they specifically target areas to talk about, which is child and family services matters? In other words, who would have written that? If he doesn’t want to name the name, name the section or the position. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to return to the Minister of Health’s answers here and I wanted to continue to ask questions. So let’s break down some of the departmental response in the Auditor General’s report. For the record, we all know in this building that the policies and procedures manual has been worked on for at least eight years. So, in other words, it makes it clear and relevant that everyone knows what’s going on, but I’ll save the questions of why didn’t they act sooner for the appropriate committee that will be reviewing the report line by line, and I’m speaking broadly, not...

The answers provided by the departments are very, I don’t know how to describe it, are exceptionally similar to the answers provided in the Auditor General’s report. So I would say this: Why are they identical? Only the Minister can answer this and if he wants to continue to dodge and try to play games about, oh well, it’s this or it’s this, and now the Member hasn’t read the report, he can play games, but the public can see this. The fact is there’s zero accountability on this and they’re getting ahead of the Auditor General, which breaks the spirit and the intent of consensus government and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Health Minister will tell you he does not have early access to the Auditor General’s report. Of course, he’ll probably tell you it’s all arm’s length, and of course, he doesn’t know anything about it until it’s tabled by yourself, Mr. Speaker. This is a paradox that now sits before this House.

Can the Minister of Health explain why the wording in the Minister’s statement given on February 25th of this year mimics much of the wording in the report tabled by yourself, Mr. Speaker, yesterday, and the report I’m referring to is the Auditor General’s report. Is this a...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A few days ago I went back to my office and on my desk there was a Snickers bar sitting there, and all of us here know what that represents. Well, I certainly don’t care who dropped that off, and as a matter of fact, they could drop a truckload of those Snicker bars off and it still won’t change my resolve to the concern about job opportunities unfairly being denied to Northerners.

It’s simply this: This McLeod government continues to fail its people by not providing those job opportunities Northerners need. Over this past month, many Members were shocked to know that...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. After a thorough and vigorous review of this latest budget of the Legislative Assembly, your loyal committee would like to move a motion.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. After such a great and vigorous debate, I feel we need to move a motion now. Therefore, I move that this committee now concludes consideration of the Department of Public Works and Services department summary and all related activities and information items contained in Tabled Document 22-17(5), Northwest Territories Main Estimates 2014-2015.

You would think it would be a very paramount job of the Minister of Human Resources to know exactly how many vacancies we have, not to wait to each quarter or semi-quarter, who knows how you want to paint it.

Why doesn’t the Minister, realizing how important this issue is, while the House is sitting, why doesn’t he know how many jobs are vacant because these are rolling vacancies if someone gets hired, somebody changes their mind and doesn’t want to work there anymore. So we have an average vacancy built up throughout the Northwest Territories government at all times.

Why doesn’t the Minister...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I talked about the job opportunities that are being denied the public, for goodness sakes.

On the GNWT’s website there were only 71 postings, half were in Yellowknife and half were outside of Yellowknife.

Where are the remainder of the 500 jobs that the Finance Minister proclaims to the public that they are actively pursuing? I’m asking the Minister of Human Resources, where are the other jobs? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. After that detailed and thorough review of the department, I will now move a motion.