Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]
I’d like to start by quoting some people across the NWT:
“Houses are built and sit empty, the system doesn’t work...”
“Housing is beyond frustration for small communities.”
“You are losing money just letting houses sit empty.”
“There seems to be a serious flaw in the approach, if it means housing, communities develop their own policies...that may be the best thing to do.”
“Maybe direct funding for First Nations from the federal government is the way to go.”
Those were quotes from the Dene National Assembly this summer in Fort Good Hope. As you can see, the First Nations are not happy with the way things are run by the NWT Housing Corporation.
There was a lot of talk about communities developing their own programs, and programs that would work in their communities, and programs that would address housing issues at the community level. The communities do not understand why a senior on a fixed income well below $20,000 per year lives in a unit that’s deteriorating every year and the NWT Housing Corporation advises them there is no money, yet they see $300,000 homes the Housing Corporation has built sitting empty for years.
The NWT Housing Corporation must change its mindset and actually develop programs that will help people. The Housing Corporation must not be about spending money to build as many houses as possible. It should be about spending money to help people. The Housing Corporation must not develop policies and programs that do not work and stick with those policies and programs no matter what.
As you can see, the Housing Corporation can paint a house and change the windows even if the roof has blown off the house, because the program says to paint the house and change the window. In other words, the NWT Housing Corporation has removed common sense from their delivery and only follows a set of policies that do not work.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
