Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last week I was asking questions to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment on training for the Inuvik-Tuk highway. I guess you could say I was putting the cart before the horse, but now that we have made decisions on the Inuvik-Tuk highway, I’d like to ask the Minister again, is the department making any plans for training in the Beaufort-Delta starting this spring.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. The Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. That is a great question. This is an area that we are preparing. I just met with the standing committee this morning, just preparing for whether it be the Deh Cho, Sahtu and Beaufort-Delta, there is so much activity that will be happening in that area. We need to plan now. I’ve instructed my department and also my senior staff that we need to develop, if there is a committee in place already, what are the training needs and the requirements at the community level and let’s focus on those are let’s have a meeting immediately. We’re forming a steering committee to deal with those matters, especially the Beaufort-Delta now that we just approved infrastructure. We’re going forward on that and we are full force following through with that.
It’s projected that we’ll provide 400 jobs on the Inuvik to Tuk highway. There is a lot of training that needs to be done. A lot of our workers right now are actually travelling to the Sahtu for all the work that’s happening there. There is a lot that we need to do in the communities. Will the Minister use the facilities and the capacity in the communities to provide the training, whether it’s Class 1 and Class 3 and heavy equipment operating?
Those are the areas that we need to discuss with the group, and when I mention the group, that’s the community representatives, the industry representatives. They are the experts that will provide the community-based needs, the human resources. We do have community learning centres. We have the colleges. Colleges are part of the process, as well, and the Mine Training Society, if they happen to be part of the process. I think they should be part of the process, and other industries and organizations that are part of the group. We’re going to have a dynamic discussion identifying short-term, mid-term and also long-range plans on the training needs. My Department of Education, Culture and Employment at the regional level will be actively involved.
When we did do our budgeting process, we didn’t anticipate the added training needs that we are going to need in the Beaufort-Delta. I’d just like to be assured by the Minister whether we will have training in the communities, whether it’s every six months. We do have a lot of training that needs to be done, but I’d just like to be assured.
With the project that’s going forward now, there are going to be various training aspects and that’s what we need to identify. I want to push this forward expeditiously with potential partners that are there in the Beaufort-Delta and, based on their needs, develop plans of action pertaining to training. That’s an area that I’m committing to with my department, working with the regional representatives, and also industry and Aboriginal organizations. We need to plan now.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d just like to ask the Minister if he will work with the Minister of Transportation to ensure that we can find a way around the process, I guess you could say, for the basic driver’s licence. Right now, when a person gets their learners they have to wait one full year to actually get their licence, and I don’t believe that we can wait one full year for our residents to follow that process. We need to speed it up. Will they work on that?
I agree that these types of training should be pushed forward in advance. I will be working with the Department of Transportation on this particular piece of work where we’ve done that in the past in other communities, whether it be a Class 1, Class 2 or Class 3, and even Class 5. There are certain individuals that want to take this training. I will commit to the Member that we’re going to put that forward, and then based on the communities’ needs, if that is the interest, then we’ll definitely fulfil that.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
