Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. I wanted to ask some questions about how the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs deals with communities in the Northwest Territories that find themselves in difficult situations. I want to ask the Minister, if a community is located in a settled land claim area where they have a community government act such as the Tlicho Community Government Act, does the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs treat that community any differently than they would a community outside a settled land claim area? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. They do have some legislation in place. That legislation is clearly laid out what role MACA would have. So that is how we determine how we deal with those. With the other communities that are in the unsettled land claims, we do have GNWT legislation that governs our relationship with the communities. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, judging by the Minister’s response to that, all community governments across the Northwest Territories, whether they are in settled land claim areas or not, have an obligation to follow Government of the Northwest Territories legislations through municipal statute and if that is the case, Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Minister what the role and function of MACA is when it comes to the situation currently at play in Behchoko. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, we are concerned with the particular community the Member has mentioned. Our role is we have been asked by the community, the new community council, to come in and work with them on coming up with a plan to address all the financial issues that they are dealing with right now. They have asked us to come in and we have complied. Our officials are working closely with them right now to resolve some of the outstanding issues. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I think that is good news. The department is taking an active role in this situation. Does the Minister have any idea of how long the department’s involvement with the community government there in Behchoko is going to take place or is it an indefinite period of time or is it until the community is back on its feet? What is the time frame like? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, our involvement in this community will be until they are back on their feet again. We work with them to come up with a plan and they continue to follow the plan. That will be MACA’s involvement. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In such circumstances, does the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs second somebody to the community government in Behchoko? How does that work? I just want to have a better understanding if there is going to be departmental staff on the ground in the community. Are they going to be downtown Yellowknife trying to help the community? I think they should be on the ground. If I can ask the Minister that question. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, our staff has been in the community on a regular basis working with the community. They will continue to do so until they come up with a plan to resolve all their financial issues. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.
