Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier I spoke about housing issues in Nunakput, and my questions are for the Minister of the Housing Corporation.
Mr. Speaker, with the agreement between the GNWT and IRC being a step in the right direction, my question is: will this agreement bring up the number of housing units needed in Nunakput in 2018? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, under the 2016 federal budget, the Member is right, $15 million was allocated directly to the IRC for 24 public housing replacement projects in the six Inuvialuit Settlement Region communities. These will not be additional units, unfortunately, for the Housing Corporation's portfolio, but will be replacing aging buildings with more energy-efficient and modernized units.
The IRC did secure the additional funding in 2018-2019 to also deliver an additional 10 public housing unit replacements for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. We continue to look forward to working with them and working with the plan to develop more housing units in the ISR region. Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate the response, although, with the population rising in all of our regions in the territory, I think housing needs to grow as well with the population.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister give detail to the agreement and the importance of hiring local subcontractors in the four Nunakput communities and the need to grow local capacity?
Most recently I had the opportunity to open the six-plex in Inuvik and also look at the work that was being done with a local contractor working under IRC. We are working towards a common goal, Mr. Speaker, and that goal is affordable, adequate, and suitable housing for the Inuvialuit people and the residents of the region.
That memorandum of agreement details the IRC and our role as the NWT Housing Corporation with respect to planning, construction, inspection, and other aspects of project implementation, and also confirms the arrangements to transfer the constructed asset to the NWT Housing Corporation for a nominal price, which the Housing Corporation will be responsible for the program afterwards. We continue to look forward to having those kinds of arrangements with the IRC.
Partnerships are essential, especially when it comes to housing. Partnerships can possibly eliminate some of the errors that have happened in the past, where homes have remained unfinished.
Mr. Speaker, with the cancellation of the MTS shipments to the region, MTS has declared that only essential equipment, gear, and dry goods will be delivered. Mr. Speaker, there are building materials that are stuck in Inuvik.
Homes are essential to the region. Mr. Speaker, will the building materials that were scheduled on MTS barges be delivered to the communities in Nunakput region on the upcoming airlift?
I have been assured that the cancellation of the MTS shipments will not impact any new construction within the Nunakput communities, with the exception of Paulatuk, which had some mechanical materials, including water and sewer tanks, scheduled for the barging. We are assessing the situation to make sure that we address it, and I will confirm and commit to keeping the Member and his constituents updated on that.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that. Mr. Speaker, they mentioned that they are replacing homes, and hopefully the four homes that are being replaced are not taken offline before completion of this, which may be next year if we don't get the materials.
Mr. Speaker, my final question: with the population growing in the Northwest Territories and in Nunakput, how many more homes will this open up, specifically in Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Ulukhaktok, and Tuktoyaktuk, with the agreement between the IRC and the GNWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
In the 2018-2019 capital plan, we have major retrofits planned for 11 units in the Nunakput communities: 10 public housing units and one health unit. We are also, in 2019-2020, planning for five major retrofits and also looking at bringing in materials and labour to construct other market rental units for nurses and for teachers.
As I mentioned, I will continue to keep the Members apprised of the work that we are doing in all of the communities across the Northwest Territories. We also do have a new home program, where we are looking at creating 11 units across the Northwest Territories to get people who are in public housing units right now into new home ownership programs, and we will keep Members apprised of that as we move forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
