This is page numbers 1945 - 1984 of the Hansard for the 15th Assembly, 3rd 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 program.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

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Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, I can't speak for the consulate general or for the ambassador and their motivation setting up the virtual consulate. They do, I assume, want to share information and be able to communicate. Mr. Speaker, in my view, we are clearly not part of American foreign policy. We have our own views, our own government and federal government. That is where our interests and our loyalty lie.

Mr. Speaker, we do have issues though, that we must deal with, with our neighbours. Those are issues like climate change, environment and, as the Member has said, caribou migrations and sovereignty and security and so on. There are things that we should be exchanging.

Mr. Speaker, we have to recognize that we are very, very much a part of a global communication system. Internet has done that for us and I think this is one more step the American government has taken. The sites they have are across Canada, not just for the Northwest Territories, by the way, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

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Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Premier's inclusion of a number of areas of international concern and interest that we share. I wanted to ask the Premier if he would undertake to create a dialogue that we could have directly, as people of the Northwest Territories, with the American people and their officials on these significant associations. Certainly I would put caribou, missile defence and, in the not-too-distant future, Mr. Speaker, what will be a contentious issue; that of fresh water. Can the Premier help us get together with the Americans and talk about these issues? Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

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Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, I would be pleased to do that and in fact Mr. Speaker, I did go over to Sir John Franklin High School yesterday to take part in the orientation for the students and the introduction of this virtual consulate. I did take the opportunity, even though I didn't want to hone in on the students' projects too much, to send a message to Ambassador Cellucci and I did, while waiting there, get a reply from him, as did a number of students.

Mr. Speaker, I think all northerners, if they have questions and they want to make their views known, should access the site; it is there. I don't have the Internet address for it right now, but I would be happy to share that with Members as well, if you want to communicate with the American consulate in Ottawa. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

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Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, I very much look forward to the opportunity to take these issues on with our American friends. I do call them friends; our nations do have their differences, but we have so much in common. This is where I wanted to ask too of the potential that this web site has to engage in even greater trade and exchange. The American market is the world's biggest consumer of energy and diamonds, we've got lots of that, and they are great consumers of our hunting and fishing products. Can we use this new link, Mr. Speaker, to further share in our interests with the Americans for those products on the market? Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

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Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, I am sure we can, because it is open and...Of course, the communications are through the embassy, but I am sure that they would, at our request, forward these on to other people who may have interest in it as well.

Mr. Speaker, it's a good tool to use. I think that one drawback that I saw yesterday is that anyone else who wants to log on can also view your dialogue that is taking place. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Final supplementary, Mr. Braden.

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Bill Braden

Bill Braden Great Slave

Mr. Speaker, the on-line chat sites and dialogues that go on serve a certain purpose. I am wondering, in light of the fact that His Excellency Mr. Cellucci is, I understand, soon going to be retiring as the ambassador to Canada, we will have a new American ambassador. Would the Premier consider being among the first in Canada to extend an invitation for the new American ambassador to visit the Northwest Territories in person? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Handley.

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Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I am very interested in who the new ambassador will be. The announcement is, I understand, to be made in the next week or two and I have been working very closely with the Consul General. I might add that this is the second trip that the Consul General has made since his appointment several months ago. He was here in November and he is back here again, so there is definitely very much interest by the American government in the potential for tourism, mining, diamonds, oil and gas and so on in the Northwest Territories. We want to keep up that relationship. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services, further to my statement. Mr. Speaker, I believe, by all accounts, the Women and Children's Healing and Recovery Program being delivered by YWCA is very well regarded. I believe that the Minister thinks of this program really well, as well.

We have learned lately that this program may be halved in its funding and I know that any kind of decisions like that have been done by mistake. I know that if the Minister knew that this was going to be the impact of his budget cuts, this is not what he would have supported, because I know that Cabinet and government understand that this is a very important program. Could I ask the Minister whether he would be prepared to see if the cuts to this program being proposed could be minimized or less than what is proposed? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

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Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There were cuts proposed that were laid out in our business plan and in the draft main estimates; the details which were shared fully with the committees. It was also initially reviewed by the COs and the authorities and we reviewed the areas where we anticipated we could meet the targets that we set as a department.

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the specific cuts to Yellowknife; there were some cuts to the wellness funding, but Yellowknife Health and Social Services has about a $33 million budget. They already inject additional funds over and above what wellness funding is there. There have also been meetings with NGOs in the community, but there is sufficient latitude. If Yellowknife Health and Social Services determines within their global budget that they want to identify funds within that $33 million, they have the capacity to do that. Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

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Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What the Minister has just stated has always been my understanding, but my information is that the Health and Social Services Authority is not willing to use any of their global budget to enhance this program. I could also tell you, Mr. Speaker, in all of the discussions that we had in Social Programs committee or in any other areas, it was always understood that any reductions that we were agreeing to were monies that were not being used. It was money that -- what is the formal name for that -- was underused. The funding for this program was at $554,000; it was my understanding that the cut would be as much as what was not used last year, but the information that I now have is that the program is being cut by half of what they need.

I don't know if the Minister understands, but I don't believe it was ever understood that we would agree to that much of a cut. This program is being cut by half of what they have spent. My understanding was that they were being cut for what they didn't use. Could the Minister revisit this? Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.

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Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would be happy to review and take the concerns of the Member to the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority. As I have indicated, they have already had meetings with the various NGOs and their own officials to look at the targets and the budget figures that we have for the coming year. At the Member's request, I would be happy to visit that with the Health and Social Services Authority for Yellowknife. Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

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Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Minister's commitment to do that and I think that the Minister understands that the Social Programs committee cooperated with the Minister with regard to many of the budget items. I would be the first one to admit that this was one of them. It was always understood that this program was funded for $550,000 or near there last year and that they only spent $350,000, so we agreed that for any amount that they didn't spend, we would agree to cut that.

What I am understanding now is that the funding will only be half of the $350,000 needed, which will only be $180,000. Would the Minister talk to the board about reinstating that $180,000? Thank you.

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Miltenberger.