Debates of February 10, 2005 (day 33)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to direct my questions to the Minister of Finance. I wish I could get excited about all the good news in the budget, but there are some unhappy things…

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There is a lot of good news in the budget and I think everybody knows, including Mr. Roland, that I think he does a very good job. I wouldn’t want to be the Finance Minister for any amount of money. I think he did a good job today and some people in the gallery even said…

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Some people out in the Great Hall today said it was the best budget address they’ve ever heard. But I’ve had a few unhappy things happen in my community lately which sort of tempers my excitement about the budget address today.

I’d like to ask Minister Roland, I guess in a broad context, Mr. Speaker, if there isn’t something we can add to our process here which would make for more availability of being creative. We’re a territory of 42,000 people. We have $1 billion. If we can find a million or two for some new little initiative, we’re all excited about it. Because there are so many things that are already in place, there are so many directions we’re already going in and it seems like there’s a disconnect between this whole life that exists within departments and how the government operates and what we actually bring to bear on it, it seems like there’s a bit of a gap there. It seems like when we sit down to consider things, it’s in a very reactive fashion. We can sort of look at exactly what’s before us and respond to it. But it doesn’t ever seem like there’s an opportunity to sit and look at it in the context of we’ve got a billion dollars, what are our priorities, what would we like to do as this small, little population that lives up here in this vast land mass. I would like to ask the Minister of Finance if he thinks there’s anything that could be added to our process that could help us be more responsive to the realities that face our territory. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Minister of Finance, the Honourable Floyd Roland.

Return To Question 360-15(3): Developing A More Responsive Budget

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as a government and as we begin the process of planning for budgets and the budget cycle, there is a lot of work. A lot of it is based on existing programs and services as departments come forward for more money; forced growth, as we call it. As calls are being made on departments for new programs, those are the areas we call new initiatives, to try to find the money for those. As we set our direction, the fiscal strategy, of trying to reduce the growth of government and keep our spending in check, we have to reprioritize from within. There are initiatives that we do take that are broad across the board to look at what we are doing as a government. One of the things we key in on with the resources we have available is our strategic plan. As we sit down and map that out, we then take that and apply it to the fiscal resources we have with the core programs we have to deliver and try to work something out in that arrangement. At times we look at just broad, across-the-board direction on general reduction cycles or aiming at a five percent reduction across the board. There are times when, as we’ve brought it forward, we have looked at departments themselves. Ministers responsible for their areas are given a specific target and they come back with how they can best achieve their targets. So we try to be flexible on how we do it and come forward with some broad-based areas.

One of the areas we’ve started to look at, for example, that I’ve looked at, is a zero-based funding approach from each department. We haven’t got to that scenario just yet. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Supplementary To Question 360-15(3): Developing A More Responsive Budget

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think that’s an interesting idea and I just hope that we get a chance as 19 Members to do a little bit more strategic planning. The Minister refers to our strategic plan. I think it’s too broad. I think it’s too high level. I think we’re in a rut. I know we need to deliver core services that governments deliver and we have certain mandates and obligations, but I think in terms of how we spend our money we’re in a rut. I think there’s a lot more good we could be doing. But once something is entrenched, it seems like it would take 40 years to turn it around and do something different with that same money that might be more responsive to the needs of the day. I would like to ask the Minister if there is a way to put that kind of discussion on the agenda when we meet with the Circle of Northern Leaders to put it in the context of zero-based planning and really finding out and soliciting what are the priorities and what are the most pressing needs of the people that we serve. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Mr. Roland.

Further Return To Question 360-15(3): Developing A More Responsive Budget

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I support the idea of looking at how we attack the budget process cycle, planning, whatever we call it. At the same time, we have to realize that some of these actions also require a lot of initiative and workforce to refocus what they’re doing and come up with the numbers that we’d want as Members. Unfortunately, it does take, sometimes, a long time to turn things around. Again, there’s to and fro back in the House. Some plans are good, some things are changed. But we’re willing to sit down and try to work things through and come up with a way that we can see things. I think it’s even better now, once we get through this process. Once we have set ourselves up and have done so on a good fiscal plan, a healthy fiscal plan, then we’ll be better able to do some of that. Thank you.