Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Premier, Mr. Handley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to recognize Gerry Cheezie, a constituent and manager of the Yellowknives Dene Housing Authority. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Handley. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are on Novel housing. I would like to direct them to the Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, in his budget statement, Hansard page 680, he says that, and I quote, "Working with communities and industry, we'll pursue a comprehensive solution to the critical housing needs in the communities by promoting the conversion of pipeline workforce housing into more than 1,000 residential homes."

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Minister. On Friday, in answering my question, the Minister of Housing stated that this is really going to be a business deal between two companies which I think that there is a company who, obviously, has a product that they want to sell, and there is an oil company that, if they decide go to with pipeline housing, they are going to need a workforce, and there could be a potential marriage of two businesses with mutual interests. I don't understand why the Minister of Finance sees it as his role to include it in the budget as a way to deal with the housing needs is to promote this idea. What is the idea behind that, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the budget itself deals with all kinds of issues. It deals with housing, health, education and business incentive policies. So, Mr. Speaker, the issue of dealing with housing in the Northwest Territories is one of the critical pieces of any budget when we look at our situation in the Northwest Territories. The Novel concept that has been introduced in there is something we see of taking what is coming down in a project and using that and having something that is left behind for us to use for our residents. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know the Minister knows that the budget document is a very serious and important document. In the written answer to my question, the Minister of Housing states that there are so many things that have to happen before this: the pipeline has to go ahead; Imperial has to make the decision to do that; they have to decide what housing they are going to go with; they have to decide who they are going to go with, and on and on. The list goes beyond the control of this government. Is the Minister of Finance, as the Minister of Finance when he is talking to federal counterparts, is this one of his items: a product idea for one company? Is that what he is promoting with the Minister of Finance, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Roland

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, right now I haven't had the opportunity to meet with the new Finance Minister for Canada. With the work that we have done, the Minister of the Housing Corporation, Mr. Krutko, has met with his counterpart on this project. My role has been more in the sense of the financing, the total impact on a territorial-wide basis, and does it meet the criteria that we have in place and working with the Housing Corporation and ensuring that the numbers that are being presented are legitimate and making sure that the flow that we use is an appropriate programming that we are going to use in a sense of how this project would move along and ensuring that all departments are included in work that would need to be done.

Mr. Speaker, the Novel project itself is going to possibly be a by-product of the pipeline project. It would take the businesses to get together to choose the company. I think it is incumbent on us, as the Government of the Northwest Territories, to ensure that, if there is going to be camp housing and if there is a possibility to use it, we should make sure that the systems are put in place that would make it economical for us to, in fact, convert these over to homes in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Mr. Speaker, I believe by including this idea of promoting this idea into the budget, I believe the Minister has already taken a lot intervention and stance than the bystander sort of standoffish attitude that he seems to be showing in his answer here. I would like to know, in thinking that this is important enough for him to put it in the budget, what kind of analysis he has done in terms of determining that this is the way to go, that it would be done at the exclusion of all other housing ideas. This is an idea that is going to occupy the work, budget and mandate of the Housing Corporation for a long time to come. I want to know when he is going to make this information available to the general public before he negotiates with the Minister of Finance. From my understanding...

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member is continually, on a number of occasions now, talked about this project in a very negative manner in a sense of what we can do in the Northwest Territories or what we should do or shouldn't do. It seems that there is an inherent dislike to the fact of trying to use this concept as one that could help families in the Northwest Territories, especially those in the smaller communities.

Mr. Speaker, specifically to the issue of what we have done, we have been working with the Housing Corporation on a number of factors, coming up with impact potential costs, timing of when decisions need to be made. We have looked at the issue of lot development, land costs, total land and lot development, conversions from the architectural side, conversions from the mechanical side, conversions from the electrical side, conversion materials, freight average, total costs, so we have been working on all of those numbers. I think, Mr. Speaker, if we are actually going to go down this road, then we have to do our homework. I presented to all committee members the pros and cons and risks of this project, and believe that there are still some questions that need to be answered. If we are going to take advantage of this, we are going to have to move now and not wait for something to fall on our laps. Thank you.

---Applause

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in our financial arrangements that we hold and that we are accountable to, our arrangements do allow for some flexibility in arranging for long-term arrangements. But there is always a condition on the appropriation process and the budget being approved in this House. So we can, and we have, for example, with communities, Education, Culture and Employment has entered into some multi-year funding. That is something that we seem to be heading down more and more, but the issue is, it is always contingent on the budget being passed in the House which does have some impact on yearend and start of money flowing to these organizations when the budget is passed. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That is a condition that, of course, we uphold. We cannot guarantee anything outside of a current fiscal year. The point is that the arrangements and the expectations that organizations have in so many cases come to a complete and sudden stop on March 31st, if I have my calendar right. It is as if the door closes. There is nothing that an organization can count on. Even if it has a long and good track record, there is still that level of uncertainty. How, Mr. Speaker, can we change our approach so that organizations that have a good track record and are applying an essential service can continue, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Member is correct. There are a lot of groups out there that do some business on our behalf I guess, is a way to put it. When it comes to yearend, funding flows seem to slow down and wait for the next cheque with the new fiscal year to come in place. That is one of the reasons why we have started to look at multi-year funding agreements and arrangements. That would be the tool that would be available to us. Again, it is always contingent on the House passing the budget. There is still going to be some lag time there, but those groups that have multi-year funding agreements would know that. Once the budget is passed, it is fairly straightforward from that point. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Mr. Speaker, does our government take a proactive approach to redesigning and renegotiating our contribution agreements with NGOs to actually push and promote the idea of multi-year funding arrangements? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.