Thank you, Mr. Speaker-elect. I think housing is probably one of the most critical areas in the North. If you have suitable housing, affording housing, it really changes your quality of life. I think, as a government, with the fact that CMHC housing money is continuing to reduce on an annual basis and eventually running out in 2038, I think that certainly we can look at different models, different approaches.
I know, even myself, although I don't have much of a housing background, we get approached by people who have all kinds of different ideas on how to have cheaper housing. I don't mean cheaper, but that they can provide housing at a lower cost. The question always is: Can it be adapted to a northern environment?
We have invested in housing. We have housing programs so that we can retrofit houses and make them last longer.
Again, when we wrote to the Prime Minister, he wrote back and said that the federal government was going to resume their leadership role in housing. So I think there's an opportunity here to look at different approaches, perhaps even go as far as to have them reinstate CMHC funding. Who knows?
Obviously, we need to be innovative. We need to look at different ways on how to deal with housing.
Private ownership of housing I believe is the best way to go, and if we can find a way to have people own their own houses, I think they take better care of their houses if they own them. So, I would certainly be prepared to look at different opportunities for providing housing in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Speaker-elect.