Yes, I do Mr. Chairman, thank you. Mr. Chairman, as you and all Members of this House are aware, working in partnership with our communities is a key element of Towards a Better Tomorrow.
Mr. Chairman, the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation is committed to working in partnership with communities to assist them to become accountable for their own choices in housing. By working together, all community residents are provided with opportunities for homes that support a healthy, secure, independent and wholesome lifestyle.
The mandate of the Corporation is to assist communities to assume the role of providing housing to their residents and to sustain northern economic development. This is achieved by providing mentorship and support to our communities in the areas of technical services, research, financial support, information sharing, training as well as economic development.
Mr. Chairman, I am asking this Legislature to approve the Government of the Northwest Territories contribution to the Corporation of $43 million. Approximately $16 million of this will go to assist residents to become homeowners or to upgrade their homes.
For example, Mr. Chairman, this year the Corporation has budgeted $7.4 million for its Independent Housing Program, which helps low income families who are able to run a home but may not meet other requirements for a traditional bank mortgage. Over four and a half million has been budgeted for the Expanded Downpayment Assistance Program, which provides assistance to families who can get a bank mortgage. Last year, this program had a budget of more than $2.7 million, which resulted in clients being able to access more than $3.2 million of bank financing.
Senior citizens who need repairs or renovations to their homes can benefit from the Senior Citizens' Home Repair Program, which has over a million dollars budgeted.
Further, Mr. Chairman, $2.3 million from the GNWT will go towards the building public housing for senior citizens. Also this year, the Corporation will use over $4.2 million to assist local housing organizations upgrade, repair or, in some cases, replace public housing units.
Last year, Mr. Chairman, these programs assisted more than 350 NWT families to improve their housing situation. This means over 1,000 of our residents saw their living conditions improve through these three programs:
- • Independent Housing Program
- • Expanded Downpayment Assistance Program
- • Senior Citizen's Home Repair Program
The remaining portion of the GNWT's contribution will be used for the operation of the Corporation and local housing organizations, which operate the more than 2,200 public housing units across the NWT. These 2,200 units house over 6,000 of our residents, Mr. Chairman.
I recently tabled the Housing Corporation's 2000 Housing Needs Survey. This survey provides the Corporation with statistical information on housing needs in each of our communities. The staff of the Corporation is using this information to revise existing programs and to develop new programs or initiatives that are best suited to improve the housing situation in all of our communities.
The 2000 Housing Needs Survey shows that 20 percent of the families in the NWT are in need of some form of housing assistance. This figure, while well above the national rate, represents a decline in housing need, down from 22 percent in 1996. The total withdrawal of federal funding for new social housing has put a severe strain on the Corporation's ability to meet the housing needs of our residents.
By increasing the number of homes and repairing and renovating existing homes, the Corporation helps to address the other important social problems that children and families face. Overcrowded and inadequate housing contributes to numerous social and health problems. By providing better housing the costs of health care, income support, policing and penitentiary services are lowered. This supports the goal of healthy Northerners in Towards a Better Tomorrow.
By using the information from the Housing Needs Survey and by working in partnership with our communities, economical and innovative solutions are being developed that meet community needs.
Mr. Chairman, as part of this effort to work in partnership with communities, the Corporation is developing four-year capital plans to improve the housing conditions. Also, the Corporation has begun work to move program delivery closer to the communities. Two new district offices are being created. The Western Arctic district has been divided in two, creating the new Sahtu district and the Beaufort Delta district. In the south, the South Slave district has been split creating the new district of Nahendeh. These new districts offices are located in Norman Wells and Fort Simpson.
This concludes my remarks, Mr. Chairman, except to say how important it is to have a single agency dedicated solely to improving housing conditions for all of our constituents. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.