Good afternoon, Members. Welcome to the House. Orders of the day. Ministers' statements. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, we are having a theme day on the high cost of living, Mr. Speaker. One obvious response to address the high cost of living is to put more money directly into residents' pockets.

This government needs to respond to this problem with a serious push for the adjustment to our northern residents' deductions; an idea that has recently received a lot of airtime, especially during our last federal campaign, and it has been mentioned several times by constituents directly to me.

Everyone in this House is well aware that the federal government established a northern residents deduction in 1988 at $5,400 per household and then increased it to $5,475 in 1991 in zone A, which includes the entire NWT. Everyone is also aware that rate has remained the same since.

Residents of our three territories, and the northern regions of some provinces, receive this benefit. But it feels skewed, as far as I'm concerned, Mr. Speaker. While the deduction has remained the same, at $5,475 for the last 15 years, cost of living continues to climb. It is clear to me that this deduction needs to be adjusted, and adjusted quickly. We need it to reflect current market rates, not the market rates of 15 years ago, Mr. Speaker. Not only should that be a consideration, this adjustment needs to be on an annual ongoing basis to reflect real times and real costs.

Our northern deduction -- that is, our northern residents deduction -- needs to be indexed to market inflation rates to avoid erosion of our dollar that continues to grow in expenses upwards every day in this territory.

For every $1,000 that the deduction is increased, Mr. Speaker, that would mean $3 million back in the NWT residents' pockets. That is $3 million that would go a long way to help pay for groceries, go towards the high cost of rent, oil bills, mortgages and utility bills, Mr. Speaker, just to name a few. These simple steps would have real impacts in our residents' pockets; impacts that could be felt throughout our NWT.

Canada is beginning a new session through the new government and they said that they would look at new tax adjustments and alterations that reflect different priorities. This needs to be a priority, significantly pushed by this government. This issue needs to be brought to the forefront. So, Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time, I will have questions for the Minister about trying to make differences for our northern residents. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I am once again going to speak about the cost of living here in the Northwest Territories. It is an issue that all Members of this House share in addressing the concerns of the people that we represent.

Regular members passed a motion last year calling on the government to take some immediate action on the rising cost of living. This, at that time, was precipitated by the geopolitical and natural disasters that were pushing fuel costs to unprecedented levels.

The GNWT has acknowledged that it had to look in the mirror and challenge itself on its own consumption while, at the same time, offering residents incentives and programs designed to help ease the pain of these inflated prices. Prices have backed up somewhat but, as a government, we must continue to push forward with the programming and new innovative ways to cut back on consumption. It is an excellent idea to offer a break for residents servicing their furnaces, but it would make more sense to do this in the fall when people would be doing that, instead of the dead of winter, so you would have more uptake on it.

Energy prices are just part of the issue of the rising cost of living here in the Northwest Territories. The motion last year also put pressure on the government to publicly discuss their plans for dealing with the high cost of living. We have had that meeting just a few weeks ago. In my opinion, the GNWT did a great job at making a case that it is a very expensive place to live. Thanks very much, guys. No one can dispute the facts, Mr. Speaker. We need to find real solutions and take the action necessary to carry them out. Some of the ideas that I have brought forward in this House that I would like to see pursued, are such things as a permanent trust fund for all residents here in the Northwest Territories, value-added industry from the oil and gas developments like a refinery, tax credits for interest paid on mortgages, and while we are

discussing that, we should include rent as well, the exclusion of GST being paid on energy bills, tax credits for northern residency and an overall exemption for the three northern territories on paying the GST.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to discussing these issues with the Premier at the appropriate time. Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, Members have chosen to focus their Members' statements on the cost of living in the North. It has always cost more to live in the North, but those costs have risen dramatically with the record price of crude oil. This has affected the cost of fuel for our vehicles, fuel to heat our homes, fuel for the generation of electricity, fuel for air transportation, fuel for the vehicles by which we receive most of our goods in the North, most essentially our food. We can't change the environment in the North, but we can change how we operate within that environment. If ever there was a place where attention should be paid to innovation and cutting-edge technology in construction, mechanical systems, methods of power generation and energy conservation, you would think that it would be here in the North.

Such a high percentage of what we earn goes to pay for our basic needs: shelter, food and transportation. But I think we have been remiss in being cognizant of our harsh environment in how we live and move about in the North. We continue to build buildings with relatively little investment on the front end to avoid the high ongoing costs of operation. This is where I think the government needs to take a leading role. We need to lead by example, in ensuring that every cost-effective measure is taken to build homes and capital infrastructure that will use energy in the most efficient way.

Recently, the director of the South Slave district housing office in Hay River told me about a prototype subdivision in Okotoks, Alberta, that was set up as an example of a model of energy efficiency. Let's go down there and take a look. Let's make our next group of public housing units a state-of-the-art demonstration of real affordable housing.

I would like to see some model homes in the North showcasing all of the latest methods of construction, high-efficiency heating systems, energy-saving appliances and fixtures, et cetera. I would like to see demonstration projects of retrofits to existing buildings employing every modern means of reducing costs of operation. Perhaps we haven't had enough incentive in the past, but for more than just monetary savings, to be good stewards of our environment, we should have sufficient motivation now. I want to see our government take a leading role in this and many other initiatives to bring relief to families and northerners who are being challenged right now to make ends meet with the unprecedented high cost of living in the North. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, no matter how you look at it, the high cost of living is a real issue for us in the North. It is simply very expensive to live in the North. Everything here costs more, and the government is doing very little to make it any easier.

Mr. Speaker, according to the 2003 Statistics Canada survey, Yellowknifers spend way more than the national average on all categories, and more than even the territorial average. Mr. Speaker, on overall household spending, Yellowknifers spend $90,000 per household compared to the Canadian average of $61,000 and $77,000 for the NWT-wide. That is about 47 percent more, Mr. Speaker. Yellowknifers spend $2,000 more on food bought from stores and $1,600 more on food bought from restaurants. That is 30 percent more. Yellowknifers spend about $7,500 more on principle accommodation, whether it is rented or owned. Yellowknifers spend almost $2,000 more on water, fuel and electricity than the national average. Yellowknifers spend almost 96 percent more on water and sewage, 65 percent more on oil and gas, 43 percent more on electricity than the national average. This was just in 2003, before we have seen the latest increases, Mr. Speaker.

I can tell you that there is a lot more where this comes from, which is a document that the government issued. It is the survey from Statistics Canada. Yellowknifers spend $1,000 on household furnishings and equipment, and we spend $1,300 more on clothing. We spend $3,000 more on recreation, $1,400 more on personal insurance and pension contributions. The big grab is that we spend almost $3,000 more on personal taxes.

Mr. Speaker, it may be that we spend more because we make more, but I am certain that, given the choice, we would like to pay less on these items and build up some savings, and I could also add that we are very generous people because we spend more on gifts of money and contributions, as well. Mr. Speaker, I have to tell you, pushing for a cut in northern residents' deduction from the federal government is just one thing, but it is about high time that this government does its part right here in the North to do something about this high cost of living. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Ms. Lee. Before I go on, colleagues, I would like to draw your attention to a very distinguished looking group of graduates in the gallery. They are there from the community wellness workers diploma program. They are Lucy Dillon from Tuktoyaktuk...

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Beatrice Blake from Fort McPherson, ...

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Wilfred Simon from Fort Resolution, ...

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Tina Gargan from Fort Providence, ...

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Cyndy Caisse from Yellowknife, ...

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...and Byrne Richards from Yellowknife.

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Also with them is Vicki Jacob, the instructor from Keyano College. I think that is from Alberta.

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Welcome to the House. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Finance Minister Floyd Roland tells us the NWT is about to become a key economic driver for Canada. While this has many positive aspects, opportunities and potentials for us, there is also a considerable cost to a rapidly increasing cost of living in a very hot economy. For instance, in Yellowknife, getting a place to live at a reasonable cost has got to be the major issue facing the opportunities for growth and stability for this community. Yellowknife continues to be a magnet community, Mr. Speaker. I hear from people who come to live here from many other parts of the Northwest Territories and Canada. They have moved here for education, jobs, services and other attractive amenities of the city, but they continue to have difficulty in finding reasonable and appropriate accommodation.

The survey of average spending by community types shows that spending on shelter in Yellowknife is significantly higher than $19,000 a year, compared to the rest of Canada at $11,000, or the rest of the NWT communities, Mr. Speaker, at $10,000 a year. On all accounts, the cost of living in Yellowknife significantly exceeds that of the rest of the NWT and Canada at about $8,000 over the yearly average.

Mr. Speaker, the Yellowknife Housing Authority has some 100 applications from people needing low cost housing. In 1999, the monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment here was $986. Last year, it was $1,302; a 32 percent increase, Mr. Speaker. All levels of government, federal, municipal and territorial, can and should be assisting to a much greater degree in increasing the affordable housing stock.

Mr. Speaker, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation has largely backed out of its mandate to be the national leader for affordable housing, so what can we do here on our own in the NWT? Across our governments, I think things are possible. Municipal governments can look at zoning and other regulatory aspects. Designers and builders can look at the way we have a tendency to blast and fill. Can we do things that are going to do a better job of fitting in with the geography? Mr. Speaker, I believe we can all be more innovative and really make a difference for housing. I am going to have questions, too, for the Minister at the appropriate time today. Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Braden. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Villeneuve.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the issue of the high cost of living in the North has always been the basis for many exchanges here in this House. This government has been both at the receiving end of the cost of living concerns from northerners for their own actions and, at the same time, advocating on behalf of northerners to the federal government about the high cost of living and why resource revenue sharing and devolution are important to addressing this concern.

Mr. Speaker, it can be argued that the cost of living in the North can work both for us and against us, depending on which area or department we are looking at. But, overall, I do not see any significant changes in many support programs of government that reflect or cater to offset the changes in a household's real cost of living. One such program which comes to mind is our support for traditional economies in the NWT, namely trapping, hunting and fishing.

Mr. Speaker, I am aware and commend this government that has made some significant improvements and positive changes that better serve the needs of trappers and fishermen in the NWT. Increases in trapper training and life skill programs within our schools, and working towards the modernization of our fishing industry to better compete on the global economy are just some of these positive steps taken. The area I want to bring to the attention is to the area of hunting and harvesting of big game, namely caribou, moose, muskox and bison.

Mr. Speaker, we can all agree that the high cost of living in our communities is definitely kept at bay by wild food that is hunted and gathered by many families in our small communities to offset these high costs of food prices at the local level.

Mr. Speaker, I want to emphasize this important contribution harvesters make to our culture and our communities, and keep this government moving forward on initiatives which will assist northern hunters and harvesters in determining and managing the short and long-term effects harvesting has on certain big game species. In other words, establishing reliable, concise and accurate baseline data is paramount to achieving a sustainable traditional economy and information from the community being the most reliable source. I would encourage our government to develop a comprehensive strategy to move forward a hunting and harvesting policy framework that incorporates the small community perspective and traditional practices. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

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Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Today, I would like to speak about my favourite person in the whole world. That is granny from Nahanni.

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Her story, Mr. Speaker, accurately reflects the story of the high cost of living that affects all of us northerners. She is basically a healthy, elderly woman that lives by herself in Nahanni. Her family takes loving care of her and visits her often. I, too, take my time to visit when I am there. During my last visit, I went to see her and I brought her a small gift as is customary when we are visiting elders. It was a tin of snuff. It is one of her simple pleasures that she enjoys. She says to me, thank you very much. I haven't had snuff for a while. I said, you get a pension. Didn't you buy any from the store? She says, no, I have to spend all my money on bills. With that, her life is simple and basic, Mr. Speaker, and her choices, like many low income and no income residents throughout the North, is governed by her fixed income.

Recently, Nahanni Butte had their fuel delivered for this season. Typically, we do that in all the small communities. The government provides fuel trucks and stocks them up for the whole year, but, last fall, when the prices of fuel skyrocketed throughout the world, Mr. Speaker, we had to adjust the prices in the small communities. Now it is stabilized. The price actually went down, but now, in the small communities, the prices are still high, like $1.40 in one of the smaller communities that I represent, and that is just not acceptable because we have a government that is unwilling to adjust that and fix that for them.

Mr. Speaker, all the people ever ask of us is to hear them and for us to be responsive to their needs. They see things in the national media like the federal government announcing some fuel rebates, Alberta giving fuel rebates and, in fact, even the new Conservative government is going to provide $100 a month. That is what they are looking for. What are we going to do? I am here to ask that on behalf of our people. Mahsi.

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Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Members' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Members' statements. Reports of standing and special committees. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery.

It gives me great pleasure today to recognize a distinguished group of students in the gallery and a couple of teachers from Ecole Boreale in Hay River from grades 5, 6, 7 and 8, who are here to do a tour of the Assembly and view the proceedings, and also take in some other sightseeing tours and activities here in Yellowknife. I would like to welcome Krista Painchaud, Krysta Boyer, Gill Belanger, Desiree Boulanger-Rowe, Vanessa Roy, Eric Barry, Julia Gyapay, Mark Montinola, Alysa Gallardo, and Esther Hiebert. I would like to turn over to my colleague from Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen, to introduce the rest.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is a pleasure to welcome the students from Ecole Boreale who are here today with their teachers. I would like to recognize Simon Barry, Connor Goudreau, Neesa Lelaidier, Isabella Galan, Chantel Beck, Alexis Miller, Ilona Gyapay, Sydney Danielsen, Chantay Boulanger-Rowe, and teachers Sophie Call, and Michelle Pulvermacher.

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If I didn't say your name right, I do apologize. I did my best. Thank you. It is good to have you here.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Dent.

Mahsi. (English not provided)

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