This is page numbers 1057 - 1078 of the Hansard for the 14th Assembly, 6th 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 communities.

Topics

Diamond Jenness High School Graduation Class
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1060

Paul Delorey

Paul Delorey Hay River North

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure today to rise and recognize the 2003 graduating class of Diamond Jenness High School in Hay River. Mr. Speaker, there are 42 students graduating this year. This will be the largest graduating class ever for Diamond Jenness. Of these 42 graduates, 21 have been attending school together in Hay River area since kindergarten, which is also a new record.

Mr. Speaker, this group of fine young people have achieved this milestone through a tremendous amount of hard work, dedication and perseverance. Graduation, Mr. Speaker, is truly a time for celebrating this most important milestone. It is my sincere hope that their well-deserved success will serve them well in all their future endeavours.

Mr. Speaker, it will be my pleasure to attend the graduating ceremonies on June 28th in Hay River. Time does permit me here to list the names of all the graduates, Mr. Speaker, but I would like to thank Ms. Lynn Philips, a constituent of mine who while being a fine teacher is also the grad 2003 advisor.

Mr. Speaker, in addition I would also like to recognize the parents of the graduates who put in countless hours fundraising and organizing a safe, fun and truly memorable dry night of activities for the graduates. They are to be commended.

Mr. Speaker, while this time of year is a time of celebration and joy for the graduates, it also brings back some sad memories of a time a number of years ago when I lost a nephew during graduation celebrations on our highways. I would like to pass on to all the graduates that, although it is a time for joy and celebration, we must keep safety in mind and the celebration should not include being on the highways drinking and partying and I want to wish all the graduates a very safe and joyous summer. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Diamond Jenness High School Graduation Class
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1061

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

Working Together
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1061

Leon Lafferty North Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have noticed a disturbing trend that is occurring in the Territories. We have doctors, nurses, teachers and sports organizations threatening to walk away if they do not get their way. Mr. Speaker, people have to start looking at why they have chosen the positions that they have and who they are here for. When just maintaining existing services is a priority for this government, threatened walkouts only create fear and division. I think that, where the government is involved, the public has to realize there is a large debt and that finding more and more and more money is not always possible, especially when cutbacks are happening.

Sometimes in this House there is a lot of division. Debates rage, but no solutions are found and these issues turn into emotional battlefields with no winners. Mr. Speaker, instead of taking a position and making a stand, maybe all Members of the Legislative Assembly and these groups need to meet and reach a common goal. I know this can be effective. As a Member who helped to establish the Special Joint Committee on Non-Tax-Based Community Affairs, we formed this committee to identify the needs of the smaller communities. I was pleased that on Monday, June 9th, everyone in the House agreed to work on the motions that we introduced. Mr. Speaker, this was a productive use of our time with concrete results.

With regard to the creation of a new sports and recreation board, the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs stated last Thursday that there were three reasons for the suggested establishment of a new board: one, to provide small communities more opportunities to participate in the sports and recreation system; two, to ensure representation by small communities in the decision-making process; three, to establish a mechanism to allocate lottery resources fairly among communities and regions.

Mr. Speaker, whether or not these objectives can be met by forming a new sports and recreation board is creating a lot of division. It might be more effective if all the players sat down and worked together toward common solutions. Mr. Speaker, I think the whole territory loses when we fail to work together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Working Together
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1061

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Minister Allen.

National Aboriginal Day Celebrations
Item 3: Members' Statements

June 12th, 2003

Page 1061

Roger Allen

Roger Allen Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to speak about the upcoming National Aboriginal Day to be celebrated by my constituents in Inuvik. Mr. Speaker, this is not only a day for aboriginal people to celebrate, but for all people of Inuvik and the surrounding communities to join in to express their cultures by sharing in the feast, the dance and other scheduled activities for that day.

Mr. Speaker, I have been advised that this year's Aboriginal Day festivities will be jointly coordinated between the Gwich'in, Inuvialuit and Sahtu and various other people who have so volunteered. Mr. Speaker, I want to encourage all ethnic groups in my riding to take part in the festivities organized for National Aboriginal Day. I believe there will be a full parade, so hopefully we will see everyone join in to make a float representing the many cultures that reside in the riding of Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the people, the organizers and those who support National Aboriginal Day in Inuvik for their dedication and effort in making this day so special in all the communities across the Northwest Territories. I would like to wish all the people of the Northwest Territories a National Aboriginal Day and hopefully the day is well enjoyed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

National Aboriginal Day Celebrations
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1061

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Minister Allen. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. McLeod.

New Swimming Pool For Fort Providence
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1061

Michael McLeod

Michael McLeod Deh Cho

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to make a few comments about the Fort Providence request for a swimming pool. Mr. Speaker, for many years we have had problems with the pool in Fort Providence. We have gotten away with patches and repairs, but two years ago there was an analysis done on the building and the building was condemned due to structural and foundation problems. I don't think anybody was surprised, Mr. Speaker. The pool was built 28 years ago and at that time it was a second-hand pool brought in from another community.

Throughout the life of this facility it was the most used recreation facility in the community. When the pool closed last year it became a major concern for the residents of Fort Providence because the children were forced to swim in the Mackenzie River. Since that time I was approached probably by every group and every government body in the community, the hamlet, the band, the Metis. By parents concerned for their children. By elders with concern for their grandchildren. From the youth of the school that petitioned probably every gathering with signs and a message that they needed a safe place to swim.

Given our location and the speed of the river and the current and the number of drownings in the river over the years, the need for a pool in Fort Providence is very real. I was very happy and very relieved when the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs heard our pleas and responded by including a pool in the capital plan for this year.

All the while, the community has been working on raising funds to try to build a pool in the event that we could not get any government funding or if we did obtain some funding from the government we would use that money to upgrade the pool. Some of the ideas we were tossing around to upgrade the pool would be the addition of a wading pool or a steam room for the seniors, because that is a request that the seniors put in. We also wanted to put in a heating system to extend the season from May to October.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

New Swimming Pool For Fort Providence
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his Member's statement. Are there any nays? Mr. McLeod, you may conclude.

New Swimming Pool For Fort Providence
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

Michael McLeod

Michael McLeod Deh Cho

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, today I want to commend the efforts and the hard work of the hamlet council and the recreation committee who immediately went to work and started raising funds over this last year. To date they have raised $64,000 that will be turned over to the pool committee. For the size of Fort Providence, the size of the community, this is a major accomplishment.

I also want to thank the students of the Deh Gah School for getting involved with the campaign to build this pool. This youth group was determined to get a pool. I attended the school Christmas concert last year where they stated publicly that they would raise the money to build a swimming pool. They have since been fundraising, soliciting donations and getting the message out that they want a pool, they need a pool, and they had the donation jars all over the community.

On Tuesday of next week the Deh Gah swimming pool group will be presenting a cheque to the Hamlet of Fort Providence for $5,000. So I wanted to commend them and say, my hat is off to them. This group is comprised of a few students from the school: Hayley Arychuk, Shawna McLeod, Rebecca Landry, Lalitha Nadli and Maureen Sabourin, along with the principal, Jane Arychuk. They have done a good job. They managed to get the message out. We are getting a pool and they have certainly demonstrated what can be accomplished when a whole community works together for a specific project. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

New Swimming Pool For Fort Providence
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Sport And Recreation Volunteerism
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

Brendan Bell

Brendan Bell Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of discussion this week in the House about sport and recreation, specifically sport and recreation opportunities and levels of participation and the disparity between small and large. In my statement earlier in the week I suggested that one of the things that was more important than adding new governance structures was to do an audit or an inventory, if you will, Mr. Speaker, of organizations and of levels of participation in the small communities and in the large communities and take a look at best practices and see if we cannot build from some of our successes.

One of the things I think we need to look at, Mr. Speaker, is voluntarism. This is something that we have discussed quite a bit and we have sort of tended to skirt the issue and dance around it a little bit, but I think the question needs to be asked, Mr. Speaker, why do we see volunteer networks that are well-developed and built up in our large communities and not so much in our smaller communities? Is it that, Mr. Speaker, people who live in small communities somehow are less willing to help others help children in communities? Somehow are not as big-hearted? Mr. Speaker, I think we know that is not the case.

In the North, indeed even in the south, all of us who have had the opportunity to visit small communities know that some of the best people in the country live there. But I think we need to look at, Mr. Speaker, what kinds of things really are contributing to this. I think certainly critical mass, Mr. Speaker, is one of them. With that comes respite. You simply cannot expect the same few people to coach hockey, soccer and participate as volunteers in all of these activity areas. People simply get burned out. Even in Yellowknife we know, Mr. Speaker, it seems it is the same people time and time again volunteering. I think that is further exacerbated in the smaller communities.

What about, Mr. Speaker, employment? I think if we look at small and large communities you would notice that the highest levels of unemployment are in our smallest communities. Mr. Speaker, as the hierarchy of needs would tell us, you certainly need shelter and food and an adequate standard of living before you can concern yourself with something like voluntarism. Mr. Speaker, I think that is also why you will notice typically people talk about the RCMP officers and teachers in smaller communities being the ones who volunteer. Mr. Speaker, they have jobs.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Sport And Recreation Volunteerism
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his Member's statement. Are there any nays? You may conclude, Mr. Bell.

Sport And Recreation Volunteerism
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1062

Brendan Bell

Brendan Bell Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Another thing I think we should look at is experience with organized sport. What is it about these RCMP officers, teachers and others who are imports from the south? More than likely, Mr. Speaker, they have had experience as children themselves with organized sports. More than likely their parents were involved as volunteers. We know when we look at education levels, certainly second generation children who have had parents who have been through the school system, had a formal education, are more likely to succeed and their parents are more likely to be involved in ensuring that they are doing homework and recognizing the benefits of education. It's no different, I presume, Mr. Speaker, in sport.

So I think we need to talk about what we can do. What can Municipal and Community Affairs do, Mr. Speaker? Well, certainly, I received a letter today and I think this is a point that needs to be made time and time again, Municipal and Community Affairs can encourage the development of voluntarism, not only in the largest communities, but also in the smaller communities, Mr. Speaker. What can we do? Well, as a government, I think we need to ensure that all regions benefit from economic development. Simply, Mr. Speaker, if people are not employed, I do not think that voluntarism is the first thing on their mind.

As a legislature as well I think we need to make healthy living a priority and, if it is a priority, we are going to have to fund it adequately. But it is also important, Mr. Speaker, to talk about what we should not do, and I think what we should not do is undermine the efforts of the volunteer network that we have built up in the larger communities.

Mr. Speaker, I think that when we see coaching clinics, and I know it is not as often as it should be in the smaller communities, I think you will notice that most often it is volunteers from larger communities who come in to share their experiences and share their enthusiasm time and time again. I think, Mr. Speaker, this kind of thing can be contagious. Thank you.

---Applause

Sport And Recreation Volunteerism
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Nitah.

Summer Gatherings
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

Steven Nitah Tu Nedhe

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about gatherings. We are entering the summer months, a real quality time of the year for Northerners and maybe the weather will be a little bit nicer to us this summer, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to start to talk about gatherings in my consistency first. On the 25th to the 27th the Akaitcho government is having their annual general assembly in Lutselk'e, and the Metis Nation is gathering in Fort Smith the first week of July. As always, every summer the people from Lutselk'e, Fort Resolution and the Yellowknives Dene Band will be taking their boats and flying their people to Fort Reliance, or Desnechay (sic) they call it Chipewyan, for a spiritual gathering, a week of celebrations, connecting with their spirituality, reconnecting with family and friends.

Again, Mr. Speaker, there will be gatherings right across the Territories in every community to celebrate Aboriginal Day on the 21st of this month. I am, as is the Premier, very proud to be involved in the Assembly that recognized the importance of that day for aboriginal people in this territory and right across the country, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the Dene National Assembly will happen the first week of July and I would like to join the Premier in thanking Mr. Erasmus for his 16 years of dedication to the issues of the Dene and the people of the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, the Premier mentioned a lot of important positions, but I am sure Mr. Erasmus will join me in thinking about all the elders he has worked with over the years, and there were many elders. Like Mr. Wright from Fort Norman or Tulita who contributed to the knowledge of the Dene people and has taken us in the last 30 years from a hunter-gatherer society to the information age. It took the Russian society 300 years, Mr. Speaker. I would like to congratulate Mr. Erasmus and thank him on behalf of my constituents for his 16 years of dedication. I am sure Mr. Erasmus and his family will be doing well in the future.

I would also like to thank Rick Edjericon for four years as chief of the Yellowknives and wish him luck in his bid to replace Mr. Erasmus. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Summer Gatherings
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Nitah. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Affordable Housing
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to talk about the value and the significance and the importance of having a home. Wherever one lives in the North, in Canada or around the world, a home is more than just a shelter or a place to get away from the elements. It has to be something that is comfortable, that is secure, that offers shelter, especially here in the North, Mr. Speaker, where so much of our year is spent in the cold and the dark. A home must be the place where we want to go to at the end of the day. It must be something that we can share with our families and have a sense of hope and love in.

This is one of the things that is becoming more and more difficult, as I have continued to press, Mr. Speaker, especially for low or middle-income people in communities like Yellowknife or Inuvik where the economies are doing so well. These people are having a harder and harder time finding a home, and I mean a real home in the sense that we all need to be able to live and grow and share with our families. It is rewarding in this job, Mr. Speaker, to get the encouragement and the endorsement of constituents and others to find that at least on this issue I am on the right track in trying to make a difference for them in their lives. Even when I do not get the results or do not see the movement that I would like to on issues like affordable housing, it is this kind of encouragement that keeps me going.

The whole issue of housing is something that is dominant in our society and in our economy. One constituent told me yesterday, Mr. Speaker, that her rent is now $1,225 for a one-bedroom apartment. If we used the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation guidelines of 25 percent of income for housing, you would need an annual income of about $58,000 a year, or the equivalent of just about $28 an hour. Mr. Speaker, during this session we have been dealing with the new minimum wage and I would just ask Members to reflect on what that wage is, compared with the cost that this person is going through to try to keep a house.

Mr. Speaker, I am running the clock down. I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Affordable Housing
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you. The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his Member's statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You have the floor, Mr. Braden.

Affordable Housing
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1063

Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker and colleagues. I got an e-mail from another constituent and I would like to quote from it, Mr. Speaker. "I have just been forced to move from a home that I have lived in for nearly the past eight years, due to the fact of the extreme high increase in the rent. The new place is not all that cheaper, but a dollar here or there saved will help. I would just like to add that I was one of those people who signed the petition and would be greatly interested in having a chat with Minister Allen. He really needs to get out there and talk to people like me regarding this issue. So please keep it in mind if this does come about." Mr. Speaker, this constituent was one of those 500 people who signed the petition pleading for some way to address the sustained and increasing pressure on rents here in Yellowknife.

We have just a few short months left in the life of this Assembly to really make some positive impact in that area, Mr. Speaker. Minister Allen has given me some comfort that he will pay some more attention to this issue. I urge him again to be innovative, to demonstrate initiative in addressing this issue and I look forward to more progress on this later in this assembly. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Affordable Housing
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1064

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Negotiated Settlement Of The Physician Negotiations
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1064

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, for the entire time of this short session, I have been working mostly on one issue and that is to get the two parties in the specialists' negotiations, the government and the doctors, back to the table. I have used the democratic process available to me in and out of this House to state my position, raise awareness and to keep the issue highlighted. I have both privately and publicly encouraged both parties to work for a negotiated settlement.

I want to take, in the most positive light, Minister Miltenberger's comments yesterday in this House that he was willing to look at any proposal that may arise out of a meeting of the Northwest Territories Medical Association last night. It is also my understanding that the Northwest Territories Medical Association is forwarding a proposal to the government negotiator and that it might have been done already this morning.

Mr. Speaker, we are aware that in any negotiation process there is a strong need for one-upmanship. In expressing that, feelings do get hurt and tempers flare for both parties. But I also know that both parties in dispute are very aware and appreciate the needs and interests of the people they serve and they must protect. Some of those people were in the gallery last night, coming and going, many of them staying until well past midnight. Many were seniors and pregnant women and other constituents concerned about this issue.

So as I leave this House, Mr. Speaker, I remain optimistic that both parties will have their concerns in mind in their deliberations and negotiations and that the two parties will do their level best to reach a settlement and that we will see this issue resolved in due course. Mr. Speaker, I am aware that I will be out of the House, but this issue will not be off my "to do" list and I will do everything I can to encourage and urge and help the process, because I do believe that not solving it is so much more costly in all measures than to settle it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Negotiated Settlement Of The Physician Negotiations
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1064

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Item 3, Members' statements. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Minister Steen.

Return To Question 226-14(6): Recognition Of Ndilo As A Separate Community
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions

Page 1064

Vince Steen

Vince Steen Nunakput

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have a return to oral question asked by Mr. Nitah on March 12th, 2003, regarding the recognition of Ndilo as a separate community. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs does not fund Ndilo as a separate community. There has been an internal decision by the Yellowknives Dene First Nation to consider Ndilo as a part of Dettah, which is a separate community from Yellowknife. There have been negotiations between the City of Yellowknife and the Yellowknives Dene First Nation to have the First Nation take over the provision of municipal services and for mutual cooperation on common issues as part of the recently signed memorandum of understanding between the two. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Return To Question 226-14(6): Recognition Of Ndilo As A Separate Community
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions

Page 1064

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Minister Steen. Item 4, returns to oral questions. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Minister Handley.

Further Return To Question 274-14(6): Management Of Commercial Fishery On Great Slave
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions
Item 4: Returns To Oral Questions

Page 1064

Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, I have a return to oral question asked by Mr. McLeod of the Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development on June 9, 2003, regarding the management of the commercial fishery on Great Slave Lake. The federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans is of the management and conservation of all fish stocks in the Northwest Territories, including Great Slave Lake. The Great Slave Lake Advisory Committee is an advisory body established by the federal Minister to provide recommendations on matters relating to management and conservation of stock in Great Slave Lake.

These recommendations are far reaching and involve all aspects of management, including closures, licensing, seasons and quotas. The federal Minister is not bound to accept any of the committee's recommendations. Voting membership on the committee consists of representation from the Akaitcho Territory First Nation, Dogrib Treaty 11 Council, Deh Cho First Nation, Northwest Territories Metis Nation, commercial fishers, lodge operators and recreational fishers. A representative from the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development participates on the committee as a non-voting member and has raised a number of issues relating to the fishery. The committee is chaired by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

Trout stocks on Great Slave Lake, especially in areas adjacent to the Member's constituency, were heavily over fished prior to 1970 in the early years of the commercial fishery. While there is still some trout taken commercially in the area, these stocks have never fully recovered. There are a few areas on Great Slave Lake that are closed to all commercial fishing. This includes a domestic use zone around Hay River and northwest of Big Island. As well, there are seasonal closures to protect inconnu during spawning. However, the Member is correct that there is no seasonal closure for trout.

The Minister of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development intends to write to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to express the concerns raised on the management of the fishery on Great Slave Lake. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.