This is page numbers 489 - 520 of the Hansard for the 12th Assembly, 7th Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was rent.

Topics

Members Present

Mr. Allooloo, Mr. Antoine, Hon. Silas Arngna'naaq, Hon. Samuel Gargan, Hon. Stephen Kakfwi, Mr. Koe, Mr. Lewis, Mrs. Marie-Jewell, Ms. Mike, Hon. Don Morin, Hon. Richard Nerysoo, Hon. Kelvin Ng, Mr. Ningark, Mr. Patterson, Hon. John Pollard, Mr. Pudlat, Mr. Pudluk, Mr. Whitford

---Prayer

Item 1: Prayer
Item 1: Prayer

Page 489

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Good afternoon. Before we begin, I would like to recognize some students from Fort Providence. Their teacher is Gordon Walters. They are grade 10 students who came in yesterday and are going back this afternoon some time. I told them to take a minute to sit in the gallery so they could be recognized.

---Applause

Item 2, Ministers' statements. Mr. Arngna'naaq.

Minister's Statement 32-12(7): Slave Geological Province Regional Study
Item 2: Ministers' Statements

March 6th, 1995

Page 489

Silas Arngna'naaq Kivallivik

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. Mr. Speaker, the first workshop for the Slave geological province regional study occurred on February 28th and March 1st and 2nd. This workshop brought together representatives from aboriginal groups, industry, environmental groups and government. The basic objective of the study is to develop an environmental and socio-economic information base for the area that geologists refer to as the Slave geological province.

Prior to this workshop, there were discussions with these groups on a bilateral basis. This workshop was the first opportunity for all groups to express their vision, interests and concerns surrounding the sustainable development of the Slave geological province. The main purpose of the workshop was to build a partnership among all parties, as the Slave geological province regional study must reflect the priorities of all partners so that mineral development can proceed responsibly.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that after three days of hard work and considerable discussion by 50 to 60 participants, there was consensus on a course of action for the next stages of the study. A working group has been established consisting of a representative from Nunavut, Treaty 8, Treaty 11, Metis Nation, NWT Chamber of Mines, DIAND, GNWT, the guiding and outfitting industry and the environmental organizations. This working group will be responsible for refining the terms of reference for the study and organizing future planning meetings.

Mr. Speaker, it was also decided that the GNWT and DIAND would lead in bringing together all existing information, in order that the study address information gaps and not duplicate work that has already been done. Mr. Speaker, I'm very pleased with the progress that was made at this first workshop. There has been a clear indication that all stakeholders are willing to work together in designing an environmental and socio-economic study for the Slave geological province.

Mr. Speaker, this workshop was the first time all stakeholders, including Dene elders and political leaders, major mining companies, small industry, Inuit representatives, Metis, our government, the federal government and environmental organizations have met around a table to work toward a consensus. I look forward to many more successful meetings. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Item 2, Ministers' statements. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Ningark.

New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 489

John Ningark Natilikmiot

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when the staff housing strategy was implemented three years ago, the government was very careful to follow its own law. This law requires that individuals receive formal notice of rent change three months before the new rent takes effect. This law is in place for good reasons. With the high cost of living in the north, many northerners don't have a great deal of disposable income.

The three months' notice gives people a chance to plan for expenses and figure out where the money will come from for rent. It also gives people time to look for alternative accommodation if they just won't be able to pay for the rent. This can mean finding a new place to live or making arrangements to share housing.

Mr. Speaker, the government gave this consideration of notice to its staff when it increased staff housing rents and even then, people had difficulties. It is amazing to the ordinary Members that the government does not feel it must show the same consideration to people in public housing units. We find it hard to accept that the Minister of Housing can apply something different for public housing tenants than the law which applies to everyone else. The issue is not whether the law allows the Minister to do this, but whether it is acceptable to apply a different standard for public housing tenants.

Over the past few days, the ordinary Members have been trying to get detailed information from the Minister of Housing regarding the notice of April 1st for rent changes. Yesterday, in his statement, the Minister indicated that every tenant will be individually informed about the new rent scale. Given that the rent changes are now less than a month away, this means, Mr. Speaker, there are still many tenants who are confused and don't know what this really means for them.

Mr. Speaker, this is of grave concern to Members. Once again, the corporation shows that it has different rules than everyone else. Just as it remains a corporation without the need of a board, it can implement rent changes in a way which is totally unacceptable for other NWT residents. Members will be pursuing this issue further during question period. Thank you.

---Applause

New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 490

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you, Mr. Ningark. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Koe.

Visit To Inuvik
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 490

Fred Koe Inuvik

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, over the weekend, I was in Inuvik for a constituency visit. Somebody mentioned that I was in the real western Arctic. The sun was shining and it was fairly warm, compared to weather in Yellowknife.

There were lots of activities going on in Inuvik during the weekend. There was a Royal Canadian Legion rally. All the NWT branches were represented there and they were having their meetings at the legion. The Pauktuutit Inuit Women's Association were gathering for their annual general meeting. There were a lot of young athletes in town who were participating in the Inuvik regional winter games training and development camps. The dart league was having a casino; there were the usual bingos; the government had a curling funspiel; there was old timers' hockey in Aklavik; and, even on Saturday night, there was a business meeting of tourism people led by a person from Calgary starting a study on tourism organizations. For a Saturday night, they had over 20 people at the meeting.

I also had lots of opportunities to meet and talk with people. There were a lot of issues and concerns brought up by people, a lot of them revolve around government, social and health issues, education issues and housing issues. My colleagues have been raising issues about the new rent scale and the lack of information. It's no different with some tenants up there, that they're not getting complete information on the proposals.

I've also observed that there's a different air in Inuvik. The businesses seem to be thriving, they're active, there's a period of stabilization and some growth. So all these are real good signs. If we can keep the winter roads open as late as possible this year, it will continue to help the economy of Inuvik.

I just appreciate this chance to talk about my brief visit to my community and note the activities going on there. Mahsi.

---Applause

Visit To Inuvik
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 490

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Morin.

Don Morin Tu Nedhe

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. During the past several months, a number of interesting business developments have occurred in Fort Resolution. The Deninu K'ue Development Corporation, which is a commercial arm of the local First Nations, has four new projects under way. The largest deals with manufacturing of fibreglass products. The Deninu K'ue First Nation was the successful proponent of a public proposal call for bathtubs and tub-surrounds. They won that and are now building bathtubs and tub-surrounds. They have already produced the tubs and the tub-surrounds and have delivered them to the Housing Corporation. My understanding is that they are very good quality and the people doing the work are very proud of their accomplishments. It means two full-time jobs to Fort Resolution, as well as six training positions.

There is also a training program being carried out to try to teach those people to work with fibreglass. There are also three other small projects in progress as a result of the corporation's efforts to get money from the federal government. They developed what they call a "SMART program," which is an abbreviation for sensible management and real training. Their approach to that was to actually develop businesses and get them up and running in Fort Resolution.

There were three project groups. The first was made up of Paul Boucher and Monica Klugie. What they came up with was fashion, and design of fashion wear. They designed T-shirts and sweatshirts. All Members have a T-shirt. It says "Eschia" -- take it easy. Those T-shirts and sweatshirts are selling as fast as they can come off the press.

The other item they came up with is dear to the young crowd, they're bluejeans and they're supposed to be fashion bluejeans. They're called "Bare-Butt" bluejeans. They have the polar bear which is the traditional emblem of the Northwest Territories. These will be embroidered on the back with a hole in the centre so shorts can show through. That's how young people like to wear their pants nowadays, I understand. Those are coming into production and will be on the market fairly soon.

The second project group was made up of Annie Balsillie, Marilyn Martin and Irvin Norn. As Members know...

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Mr. Morin, your time is up.

Don Morin Tu Nedhe

I seek unanimous consent to conclude my Member's statement.

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

The Member for Tu Nedhe is requesting unanimous consent. Do we have any nays? There are no nays. Mr. Morin, conclude your statement.

Don Morin Tu Nedhe

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, Members. The second project group is made up of Annie Balsillie, Marilyn Martin and Irvin Norn. They took on the task of finding new markets for traditional handicrafts and traditional native crafts which people have tried to market in many different ways. What they did is designed the product and geared their product to a fairly narrow market, and that is to people who are in the United States that belong to the Black Powder Association. They have a magazine called "The Muzzel Blast," and there are over 30,000 readers to this magazine. So they've marketed directly to them. What they sell are authentic items from the year 1700, such as gun cases, jackets, gloves and complete outfits traditionally tanned. They also have orders in already. They've also designed their own marketing material that is in The Muzzel Blast magazine in the United States. So that looks like it's going to take off and pay dividends to this group.

The key thing that Members have to remember is that this was all brought about...and for each one of these projects they spent $3,000, for a total of $9,000. They managed to achieve these things with very limited resources. So it does show that our aboriginal people in our small communities can achieve things with the help of other people. They should be commended on their efforts and their achievement. I would also like to thank Norm Zigarlick and Vicki Blahun for their efforts and their help in developing this. I ask Members to wear their T-shirts and support small aboriginal businesses in the small communities. Thank you.

---Applause

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you, Mr. Morin. Mr. Morin, you might want to share with the Members later on, who was the winner of the game.

Don Morin Tu Nedhe

(Microphone turned off)

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Oh, you did. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Antoine.

Support To Canadian Red Cross
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 491

Jim Antoine Nahendeh

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Today, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize the Canadian Red Cross Society in its important life-supporting efforts in supplying blood to people. The Canadian Red Cross Society has launched an education campaign designed to rebuild public confidence in the blood supply. Mr. Speaker, the Canadian blood supply is considered one of the safest in the world and this fact was confirmed by an international panel of experts commissioned by the Krever inquiry to study the safety of the blood supply.

This can be found in the interim report released by the commission of inquiry into the blood system of Canada, which was released recently. However, Mr. Speaker, despite the endorsement of experts, confidence of Canadians in their own blood supply has been declining. Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Red Cross Society has been an agent of blood supply for many years and has always been a world leader in its efforts to be a critical source of blood supply. Insistence on the adherence to the policy of strengthening blood operations and strict adherence to policy of safety enhancement for those operations has always been the society's underlying philosophy and mandate.

Mr. Speaker, the Red Cross's capacity to inform the public of their efforts to rebuild Canadian confidence is limited and requires support. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I urge that the honourable Members of this House to support the Canadian Red Cross in its efforts to rebuild public confidence in its blood supply systems operation. Mahsi.

---Applause

Support To Canadian Red Cross
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 491

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Patterson.

Implementation Of New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 491

Dennis Patterson Iqaluit

Mr. Speaker, I've been away from the House for a couple of days so I'm going to beg your indulgence and that of Members to speak a little longer than ordinary.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, having just returned from my constituency, I was able to get a report from the Iqaluit housing authority on the new rent scale. I was shocked to learn that of a total of 402 tenants, between 200 and 250 have still not come in to report their household income and get their new rent assessment for April 1, 1995. This is far from the 95 per cent of households referred to by the Minister of Housing yesterday. Mr. Speaker, this is a very serious problem, because if a tenant does not come in to get their new rent calculated, whether their rent goes up or even down, the rent for April 1st will suddenly become the maximum rent.

Mr. Speaker, I am satisfied that the Iqaluit housing authority has made every effort to inform their tenants of these new developments. Notices have been delivered to the households, ads have gone in the newspaper and the chairman has gone on the radio to explain the new rent scale. The authority staff have even made themselves available on Saturday afternoons to go over the new rents with tenants.

I see this as a big problem, Mr. Speaker, because people who get assessed the full maximum rent -- which in Iqaluit is $2,220 for a four bedroom house -- will not pay, will go into arrears and may get evicted. How did this serious state of affairs come about, where more than half of the tenants of social housing in Iqaluit are not coming in to even find out what their new rent is. Mr. Speaker, I believe that the problem arises from the rent scale change notice devised by the Housing Corporation to try to let tenants know what is going on. I will table a copy of this notice later today.

In two places, at the beginning of the notice and at the end, the notice informs each tenant that the maximum rent will be revised substantially upward, for example, to $2,560 for a five bedroom home. Mr. Speaker, many of my constituents who have been given this sophisticated form have told me that they believe this is a notification of their new rent. They are so shocked by the new maximum unit rent that they do not go on to read, in the notice, that the actual new rent that they will be charged will depend on their household income. In short, the rent scale change notice does not inform the tenants of their new rent. It only informs them of their new maximum rent ceiling and tells them about a process where they can come to the local office to find out what their actual new rent really will be.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to continue and I would request unanimous consent to complete my statement.

Implementation Of New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 492

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

The Member for Iqaluit is seeking unanimous consent. Are there any nays? There are no nays. Please proceed, Mr. Patterson.

Implementation Of New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 492

Dennis Patterson Iqaluit

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, many of the people who haven't gone in to the local office are, in fact, low-income people whose rents might go down or at least stay the same. However, they are upset and angry and are very frightened to go into the Iqaluit housing authority office, it seems. Another indication of their anxiety is that rent payments have also dropped this past month by 30 per cent over the usual levels. The Iqaluit housing authority is over $20,000 short of rental income this February, compared to last year.

Some people have apparently given up paying any rent at all. This is a big problem. Unless there is some flexibility shown, especially for these low-income earners, I fear we will end up with many lower income people in Iqaluit having sizable rental arrears because they were afraid to go into the local housing office to find out about their new rent. They got so spooked by notice of the new maximum rent payable on their unit, that they are afraid to go anywhere near the housing authority office.

When I see the obvious confusion and fear in many of my constituents -- many of whom approached me over the weekend -- I wonder about the fairness of the process the NWT Housing Corporation has followed. First of all, the Minister says that the corporation needs to give only one month's notice because these units, unlike government staff housing, he says, are subsidized rental units. So, the corporation, probably the largest landlord in the Northwest Territories, is therefore exempt from the requirement faced by all other landlords in the NWT to give three months notice of a rental increase.

Secondly, is this really notice of a rent increase? Not the way I see it. The notice my constituents received only says that the maximum you may pay for your unit is increased. For people who are expecting to find out what their new rent will be, all they are told is that there will be a new process, taking into account all the income from a household, which will let them know what their new rents will be.

Mr. Speaker, the third big problem emerging is that elders don't like the rent scale. Many of them are feeling that by not being asked to pay any rent, their contribution to the household is not valued. The result is that working children in the family will have to pay even more than if the elders were still paying rent. Elders have traditionally made very good efforts to pay their rent. Now they are being spared from having to pay any rent but they still feel some obligation to get their working children to pay, even though the elder will be forgiven from making any rent payments.

Some children in some families are now refusing to be assessed and refusing to pay the new rents. Tensions are increasing in these families as a result. This family upheaval is exactly what had been predicted and feared in community consultations in the Baffin this past summer.

The last problem I see is that it has still not been worked out how the new tenant agreements will be set up. Whose name will be on the lease? I understand each person will be told what portion of the rent is theirs to pay. But if one person in the household pays, but another doesn't, who will be evicted? Is the good tenant in a family evicted, along with the one not paying rent? Is the elder who is not required to pay rent evicted along with the rest of the family if his or her children or grandchildren refuse to pay rent?

Mr. Speaker, I hope that the Minister of Housing can provide clear solutions to these problems soon. Thank you.

---Applause

Implementation Of New Rent Scale
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 492

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mrs. Marie-Jewell.

Lack Of Returns Provided To Questions
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 492

Jeannie Marie-Jewell Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, recognizing the Premier is out of the House today and there has been no notice given to Members as to who is acting Premier, I want to bring up an issue, particularly with regard to this government's inability to address questions posed by Members.

Mr. Speaker, since we started on February 15th, I have been trying to ask this government questions with regard to the tanker base issue. Unfortunately, the vast majority of my oral questions have been taken as notice.

As of today, Mr. Speaker, 21 oral questions were taken as notice, and as of today I still have 15 outstanding oral questions. I further recognize, Mr. Speaker, that I have five written questions still outstanding. But in reality, there are 10 questions posed under written questions to be answered.

Mr. Speaker, we are in session to address the budget and I recognize that. But this session also gives Members the ability to address areas of concern in our constituency and to ask the government questions on decisions they've made. But it seems, Mr. Speaker, that the Cabinet, particularly our Premier, cannot and is not answering my questions.

Last week, Mr. Speaker, every Minister of this government voted to have a two-week spring break. I find that somewhat shameful, particularly when I recognize that the attitude in replying to Members' oral questions is somewhat lax. Luckily, Mr. Speaker, we have rules for a time frame for written questions to be answered, but we don't have time frames for oral questions to be answered. So I would like to take the time to urge this government to reply to our oral questions, particularly before considering a spring break. Thank you.

Lack Of Returns Provided To Questions
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 493

The Speaker Samuel Gargan

Thank you. Item 3, Members' statements. Mr. Whitford.