Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, I have received distressing news that the submission put forward by the Honourable Elmer MacKay, seeking reinstatement of federal funding for the new social housing units in the Northwest Territories, has been rejected by the federal Cabinet.
In February, 1992, in his budget speech, the federal Minister of Finance announced major reductions in the federal social housing programs right across Canada. These reductions would hold growth of the federal social housing budget to a maximum of three percent increase with no allowance for inflation. The cost of inflation must be funded from within the three percent growth factor. Reducing the funding available for new social housing construction by 23 percent in 1992, and a further 36 percent in 1993, for a total of 59 percent.
The impact of these federal funding reductions here in the Northwest Territories was to drastically reduce our cost shared new social housing units. There was 372 units built last year, and by 1993 the Government of the Northwest Territories will be funded to build 153 cost shared units.
I wanted to assure Members that we have continued to work to get the federal funding reinstated to its former levels. When I met with the Standing Committee on Finance, I told Members that we were engaged in serious and intense negotiations with the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. These efforts began right after the cuts were announced in the federal budget in April. I intended a special meeting of provincial and territorial housing Ministers to discuss the implications of the cuts. I also appeared before the Aboriginal Affairs Committee of the House of Commons in May. We found them supportive of our needs. This was followed in June by a meeting between myself and federal Minister responsible for the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Honourable Elmer MacKay. Minister MacKay listened carefully to what we had to say about our unique situation in the Northwest Territories, and we were able to convince him that our needs were urgent. Also, in June, I had a meeting of the federal, provincial and territorial housing Ministers. I urged the federal Minister and my colleagues in other jurisdictions, to recognize the unique and urgent housing requirements of the Northwest Territories. We got a positive and supportive response at that meeting. The federal Minister responsible for the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Honourable Elmer MacKay, made a submission to the federal Cabinet to address the funding shortage for new housing construction for the Northwest Territories, and the Yukon, on a priority basis. If approved, funding to the Northwest Territories would have been reinstated to the 1991-92 levels. Unfortunately, although we were able to convince the federal Minister responsible for the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Honourable Elmer MacKay, the federal Cabinet did not support the submission because there was no additional funding available.
Mr. Speaker, although I see this as a serious setback, I am still hopeful that further efforts on the part of this government will result in funding reinstatement. You will recall the federal government initially rejected us supplying the Business Incentive Policy to cost shared housing contracts. Our continuous efforts were finally successful in having Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation accept the Business Incentive Policy. The same may be possible in this case.
I am continuing my discussions with Mr. MacKay, and we are also pursuing this through the Government Leader directly with the Prime Minister, and with the other provinces, and the Yukon, who are all also seriously affected by the federal cuts.
In addition, I will work with Members to complete the development of the strategy to deal with potential of no federal funding being reinstated. The efforts today were concentrated on convincing the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, and Mr. MacKay, on our need for funding, and to have the federal funding submission put forward. The strategy being developed will maximize the new unit delivery within the funding available, while recognizing that the level of service, and the number of new units, may have to decrease from today's levels.
Later on today, I will be tabling the 1992 Housing Needs Survey. The survey confirms that housing needs are continuing to grow in the Northwest Territories, and this provides us with additional information to use in our efforts to have federal cuts reinstated.
Mr. Speaker, although the news today is bad, I will continue to work to change the federal position, and will keep all Members of this Assembly informed of our progress. I would appreciate receiving input from the Members to this Assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.