Thank you, Mr. Chairman. A separate issue, capped staff. We will deal with this. That must be a separate issue. If communities feel that they do not have proper staff today, for what they're doing today, that's a separate issue. I don't know which communities are capped. All communities are given their allocation of staff according to the number of units they have to maintain and operate. That's my understanding of it. That would be a separate issue. Thank you.

I don't want to prolong this, Mr. Chairman, but my understanding from the Iqaluit housing authority is that there is a formula per household, but there's a ceiling on the number of households. Beyond that, your staff doesn't increase. I think it's 250. So they're capped staff-wise at the same level as a community administering 250 houses and they've got 350. I agree that it's a separate issue but I'm just telling the Minister that especially in Iqaluit, doing the implementation is going to require additional resources. In my view, they're already understaffed for the day-to-day working requirements. I'll just note that as a comment Mr. Chairman. I'm sure it will be taken into account as we move forward. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As it says on number six, page 14 of 16, the corporation will review and respond to specific needs of each community, including Iqaluit, with the local housing authority's board and staff over the next several months. Where required, this will include the addition of temporary staff at the local housing authority. We will treat Iqaluit fairly and equitably the same as we do the rest. We will work out the needs with them and figure out the best way to approach this. We will make sure that our clients fully understand what's happening, that full consultation is happening. We will also ensure that clients are fully aware of all the programs for home ownership that the Housing Corporation has to offer and they're properly consulted so that they can get into home ownership. Thank you.

Agreed.

---Agreed

Mr. Chairman, I'm impressed with the home ownership programs that are available and outlined in the second bullet on page 15. I wonder if the Minister has had a chance to consider the problem of land availability? I believe it's well known that in some communities there is a shortage of land for development. Even if people are eligible for the programs, they may not have land on which to build. I would like to ask the Minister whether this problem of land assembly is part of the implementation plan for those communities that have land pressures? I realize it may require working with another department but I wonder if the corporation has a strategy to make sure land is available once people decide to make the plunge to home ownership? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have instructed the president of the Housing Corporation, Mr. Al Menard, to work closely with MACA, and he does have some knowledge and experience with the land problems. We acknowledge the concern the Member for Iqaluit has raised, that there is an issue with land. We will work with MACA to address that issue in that community, the same as the rest where we do have problems with land. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Further to what my colleague, Mr. Patterson, was asking respecting land issues with the municipalities, I would like to ask the Minister a question. The Housing Corporation currently -- at least in my constituency -- has a lot of unused Housing Corporation lots where previously public housing units or northern rental units which had been written off, or had been demolished, or removed from those lots. It seems like the corporation is hoarding those lots and not giving them up for people applying under ACCESS programs or other individuals applying for land to build private houses. What it's done is created a strain on the land development areas in communities where there is a lot of development. I use Cambridge Bay for an example now because there are a lot of private homes going into that community. The Housing Corporation is applying on lots in the new development area instead of using the existing lots of which they already have title to. I would like to ask the Minister if he's aware of this issue and if he'll address it? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm aware of the issue now that the Member has brought the issue to the floor. I will make moves to address it. I will direct the Housing Corporation to sell those lots. If we don't need them, sell them. It's as simple as that. It makes common sense to sell them and let home ownership clients develop those lots because we do not have the money to build public housing any longer at this time. We might as well sell those lots. I'll direct the president of the Housing Corporation to sell them to your constituents at a fair market value. Thank you.

Agreed.

---Agreed

Agreed.

---Agreed

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Some social housing tenants in home ownership communities, as identified in the current rent scale, have been paying high rents for a number of years than tenants in non-home ownership communities. In recognition of this, some tenants in home ownership communities will be given a rebate or credit against their future rent payments or arrears of 10 per cent of the previous year's rent paid. This rebate/credit will only be applied during the period of phase-in of the rent scale increases and will be implemented only once a year. That is what the committee recommended and it's found on page 10 of 16. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.