Thank you. Mr. Lewis.

I find it incredible that the government would use the words poor risk because when a person is deemed to qualify for a loan there is no risk element involved. Once the person has met the criteria and qualifies for that loan, they are given it without any consideration of whether or not they are ever going to be able to pay it back. I find that this issue will probably come back to haunt us quite regularly over the next few years because young people are not able to get work. In those cases where decisions are made to loan people money, is risk a factor? Is this something which is part of the equation? Before you give a student money do you assess whether they are going into the right field or not, and whether they are likely to be able to get work or not, or is the old criteria used where risk has nothing to do with it.

Thank you. Mr. Minister.

Mr. Chairman, I probably used the wrong words there in saying poor risk. What I meant was that there was little chance of us redeeming that money. In other words, there was a poor chance of getting that money back. I did not mean to say that it was a poor risk to loan the money but there is little chance of getting it back. It is probably my

incorrect use of the English language for which I stand corrected, Mr. Chairman.

I believe Mr. Nerysoo wanted to speak to the question.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. There are two aspects, as my honourable colleague knows, one the matter of forgivable loans which is not a matter that is repayable, if the individual works and lives, and returns to the Northwest Territories. I believe the loan which is outstanding initially started as that but the person did not return to the Northwest Territories. There is also another program which we provide as a needs assessed loan, which is repayable no matter what situation you are in. The problem we have had in this particular situation, and I must say it is not necessarily the case in most other loans, is that we have tried to get the money back from this individual for the last several years. She has not been able to repay us with the exception of the last few months where we have been able to access $300. From a practical perspective, we did not think we should carry this on the books that this loan was outstanding. That is the issue. It is still a loan that if the individual at some time is capable of repaying or, in fact, returns to the north, and we understand the individual has the capacity to repay, then obviously we will seek repayment from that individual.

Thank you. Schedule, total debts written off, $580,553.96. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you. Bill as a whole. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Does the committee agree that Bill 24, Write-off of Debts Act, 1993, is ready for third reading. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you. Mr. Dent.

Does the committee agree that we deal with Bill 20, Loan Authorization Act, 1993-94. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you. Mr. Pollard, do you have opening remarks?

Mr. Chairman, are we talking about the Loan Authorization Act?

Yes, we are dealing with Bill 20, Loan Authorization Act, 1993-94. Mr. Pollard.

Introductory Remarks

Mr. Chairman, the purpose of the Loan Authorization Act is to authorize the government to make loans to municipalities. It is a requirement of the Northwest Territories Act that the lending of government funds be authorized by this Legislative Assembly. This act is an annual act which, for the 1993-94 fiscal year, will provide the authority to lend up to a maximum of $8 million. This represents a $1 million decrease from the $9 million authorized for the 1992-93 fiscal year.

The municipalities that have identified a requirement for loans include Fort Simpson, Fort Smith, Iqaluit and Yellowknife. The municipal purposes for which these loans will be used include the repair of existing municipal property such as road, water and sewer upgrading, and the development of new municipal infrastructure such as a fire hall expansion and arterial road construction. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you. Do we have opening remarks from the Standing Committee on Finance? Mr. Antoine.

Comments By Standing Committee On Finance

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Finance reviewed Bill 20, Loan Authorization Act, 1993-94 at its meeting in Yellowknife on March 23. The standing committee was pleased that the Minister of Finance and his staff were available to answer questions at that time. The standing committee is in agreement with the intent of this bill to authorize loans to municipalities. However, the committee was concerned about the possibility of municipalities receiving loans without having the ability to repay them. The government assured the committee that the communities must receive rate payer approval to borrow money. Once rate payer approval is granted, the municipalities must qualify against the criteria established by the Government of the Northwest Territories. These criteria are established to ensure that the municipalities have the ability to carry the debt load and repay the loan. Therefore, the committee agreed to recommend this bill to the House for consideration. Mahsi, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Antoine. Are there any general comments? It is agreed we go clause by clause. Agreed?

Agreed.

---Agreed