Robert Hawkins

Statements in Debates

Debates of , (day 10)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I guess my opinion on that is a parking ticket may not seem like a service to the person who is getting it, but it is a service to the community, as well as a speeding ticket. That’s a safety issue. I guess it’s a matter of definition. I am in favour of that. Would you define a library charge a service in this regard, because this was mentioned earlier today? I was asking specifically to parking and speeding tickets because there are people who have quite a lot of parking and speeding tickets out there and it makes it difficult for the city to collect on them. There...

Debates of , (day 10)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am in favour of the amendments that are coming forward today. I will be voting in favour of them, but I do have some questions for ultimate clarity for the public. There is a notice for 30 days, and I had concerns whether that restricted someone’s right over the long term for suing the municipality. If someone slips and falls and didn’t notice the ill effects right away, does the Minister see that this notice of 30 days restricts somebody’s ability to sue for damages or the potential to sue for damages related to some type of slip and fall that they didn’t provide...

Debates of , (day 10)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there are more than 400 people who work in this industry of northern manufacturing and I think it’s important that we take a serious look at that. This manufacturing industry commits over $63 million to our northern economy, and I think it’s more than a laughable number; I think it’s quite a serious number that we have to pay serious attention to. So I believe in my heart that they deserve a lot of respect. So would the Minister seriously consider and maybe commit today to at least look into a logo program, which would only cost pennies, so we can put...

Debates of , (day 10)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today my questions will be for the Minister of ITI, and it’s in regards to a "buy northern" program. This government spends a lot of money on northern-based industries to support them, and I applaud them for such efforts. They put a lot of efforts into the arts and crafts and even the secondary diamond industry. Even the local Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce, to their specific credit, promotes "buy local" to help support local businesses that continue to give back to the communities. So when I look at northern manufacturers, I think of such companies as Arctic Wild...

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight met on October 11, 2005, to review Bill 10, An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act. Following the clause-by-clause review, a motion was carried to report Bill 10 to the Assembly as ready for Committee of the Whole. This concludes the committee's general comments on Bill 10. Individual committee members may have questions or comments as we proceed. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, at this time committee would like to consider Bill 6 and Bill 10 in that order. Thank you.

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well I can appreciate the importance and the sensitivity of individual contracts, but the general broad brush scope of what a DM’s criteria of why they get their bonuses should be part of the management of this overall House. So, Mr. Speaker, I ask once again, would the Premier be willing to show us the type of targets and defining guidelines he’s going to have, to ensure that we have strong management and feel comfort with the crisis that we’re in, that we’re being led by good leaders in each department? Would he make those available to Members? Thank you.

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’ll refer to my concerns I raised yesterday and even a year ago in this House. It’s about this government and its management in achieving the energy targets that I’ve spoken about so passionately. With respect to the DMs and their overall performance and management of their departments in this new energy crisis that grips us all, will the Premier look at developing and attaching targets and criteria that will link the management bonuses that each department receives to how they deal with this energy crisis? Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and my question is to...

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will we still have a piecemeal process going on? I compliment the Minister on allowing a transfer to go through just in September that gave the city access to three parcels of land. We further pushed back the rest of the lands for a decision to be made in January. Regardless of what is going to happen in January, is the Minister prepared to act on the remaining outstanding applications that the City of Yellowknife has for lands and stop holding the city hostage? They need to continue to develop lands for houses and businesses, et cetera. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Debates of , (day 9)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I promised earlier, I do have my thought-provoking questions for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Mr. Speaker, status quo has truly become the norm. The one-year land lease-only policy is probably up to 16 years of life. The roadblocks for the City of Yellowknife are still being put in front of them because they need land to develop in a reasonable way. They try to work with the Yellowknives. Will the Minister provide an update on the status of discussions between himself and the Yellowknives Dene on how the City’s land requests are coming...