(Translation) Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today I would like to raise a concern of my constituents regarding the home ownership program, now called the access program. This is a program that enables people to own their own homes, and is an opportunity that my constituents greatly appreciate.
There is a problem with this program and it has to do with the amount of time that the people have to complete their homes. They have two years to build their units, unfortunately it's not always possible to finish them in this time due to several factors. These factors include the northern climate. Early onset of winter and severe cold make it almost impossible to properly construct foundations and other structural components of their houses. As well, darkness limits the amount of time one has to work outside, and safety becomes a concern. The people in my constituency who are part of this program also have jobs to go to during the day which means that they have only evenings and weekends to work on their homes.
A concern that has been expressed to me has to do with the Housing Corporation's practice of going to communities to harass those people who are behind in the construction of their houses. They threaten people with taking their homes away and giving them to someone else. This causes much worry and undue stress on these people who are trying their best to complete their homes in the specified amount of time.
Madam Speaker, the Housing Corporation needs to be more sensitive in its dealings with people involved in the home ownership program, and recognize the difficulties inherent to the High Arctic with respect to building homes. Thank you, Madam Speaker.