Robert Hawkins

Well, I’m really sorry that the Minister of ITI only heard that, because that’s not what I said. I suggested perhaps taxation is the right approach. I’m not necessarily sure. This government has foregone many taxes on the diamond mines as they were established and started producing. It’s not unusual for this government to find creative ways. What I’m really asking the Minister is if he can show me and explain to this House what programs we offer to attract business and investment in the Northwest Territories. If we don’t have a specific program targeted at that focus, would he consider...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe the North is a great place to live. People are warm and friendly despite the climate some days. Certainly it’s a wonderful place to work and I want more people in Canada and the world to know this, but sometimes I find it’s one of the best kept secrets out there. So today I want to express my concern to the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment and encourage him to take on a new and bold step to help attract businesses to the Northwest Territories.

We’ve all heard about what some other provinces do to attract people and businesses. Take Saskatchewan, for...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services.

With respect to the numerous concerns about availability and access to treatment programs and services offered here in the NWT, could the Minister please provide the following:

List of all treatment programs offered that the territorial government plays a role in either financially or in any other form of partnership capacity for the past three years and for the upcoming business cycle year.

And further, please provide the detail to each treatment program in a form that outlines it with respect to financial...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Speaking to the cost of living, if there was one reason to consider on that level, the cost of living is certainly not something to brag about in the Northwest Territories. Adding the service fee to an important product such as milk seems to be a bit of a shame. I wish the government from ENR had seen that this does not help people in that form. I realize it’s a noble cause, trying to bring the containers back for recycling and I think that’s important, but to see that they’re going to keep it on such a critical product that’s so important to the health of people, I...

The Minister knows I respect him very much, but I think he’s missing the point that I’m after. I don’t mean this in a mean way, but the reality of our funding agreements and our budget are tied around federal grants. Those federal grants are tied specifically to population and growth. So 75 percent of our budget plus or minus is based on federal grants. At $22,000 per person, that’s a lot of money. A hundred people in the Northwest Territories could mean over $2 million of just federal money, not talking about tax, not talking about what they bring. I’m only asking the Minister if he would...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement today I was raising the issue of finding ways to attract businesses to the North, to create investment opportunities for all. My questions will be directed to the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Today I’d like to ask him, as my first question, what programs and services does his department offer that target specifically to attracting businesses to relocate in the North, to be established in the North. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yet again the side of this House that has the shoehorn seems to be proceeding with blinders. They have no idea how much this will cost to cover this group that is mysteriously not covered. It doesn’t sound like they even have a clue how many people need to be covered. Will this Minister commit, before any decision is made, that we will identify the costs associated with this and with the number of people who need this assistance? Because we could do it immediately, we could provide support if the Minister could provide that cost, which she refuses to.

I guess I’ll have to spell it out a little slower so that the Minister picks it up this time. A predetermined process does not start out with an automatic implementation date. It has a closing, a consultation date, and allows the consultation discussion to drive the implementation date. The last point on this issue is when you tell people what income level it should start at, it tells me that the department has already decided that income testing is going to be a factor. It doesn’t say should it be, period, no questions asked.

What has this mysterious group that exists out there, what has this...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to recognize two very wise and certainly well-travelled Northerners. We have Mr. Ed Jeske and Mr. Mike Krutko, both constituents of Yellowknife Centre.

The ones with the shoehorn of course don’t feel shoehorned. Try being on the side of the shoehorn, not the ones with it. The reality is the Minister is blaming Members of the House -- this side of the House, we have to be very clear -- for not supporting that group of people who don’t have benefits. This Minister immediately could pass a ministerial directive that says this number of people need to be covered and this is how much it costs. How much money would it be to provide coverage to this mysterious group of people, as well as how many people? They can’t seem to answer that. Can the...