Mr. Chair, in regard to the Sessional Statement, I believe there’s a lot of good direction that’s in there. But I think it’s also how you interpret the direction to ensure that we’re all on the same wavelength.
I think it’s important that we, as government, realize that where we’re at today, we went through the same process in the 13th Assembly. And I think
from having gone through that time frame, being here today 12 years later, we haven’t really got down to making any tough decisions yet.
I think it’s important to realize that we are going to have to make some tough decisions. There are going to be situations for people who’ll not like the decisions we make, but we do have to make those decisions. I think it’s important that whatever decisions we make, we make the right decisions.
I have to admit here today that in the 13th Assembly
we did not make the right decisions. I think because of that, some 12 years later, we’re still paying for those decisions. The one that jumps right out at us is the sale of staff housing throughout the Northwest Territories, and especially in small communities where we’re having problems recruiting people because we don’t have housing for our staff.
I think it’s important also to realize that as governments have grown over the years, we have a very young population in the Northwest Territories. Almost 30 per cent of our population is under the age of 40. So that makes up a large number of our residents who are looking for work, who probably concluded school, have gone off to university, come back and are looking for jobs.
I think we can talk about healthy and well-educated people. But at the end of the day, if we do not have
the opportunities, jobs and the ability of these individuals to raise their families, to basically pay for themselves, carry themselves, and maintain a lifestyle that’s comfortable and not that they can’t be able to live in the North, stay in the North, and make the North their home, it’s all for naught.
I think there are have- and have-not communities. As I’ve stated in many of my statements, we do have poverty in the Northwest Territories. It’s the reality of living in small communities where the jobs are limited, the opportunities are limited. But again, we have to find ways to stimulate those communities through the efforts of this government.
I think where we should start is the resources we have around our communities by way of the potential that we have in our forestry industry, our renewable resource industry and also our non-renewable resource industries. More importantly, we have a lot of traditional communities that we can market as traditional communities to other people in Canada and the rest around the world by way of eco-tourism.
Also in regard to many wood products, the thing that really gets me is that we’re spending $30 million dollars a year trying to maintain a forestry resource, and the majority of that money is spent on fighting fires. Now, I think we have to be realistic here. If we’re not going to use it, we’re going to lose it. We cannot continue to spend the amount of money that we spend on fire repression. We’ve got to spend more money in regard to developing that forest product into a product that we can sell either to the Housing Corporation, to other southern vendors or to Northern industry. Use these wood products that are produced in the Northwest Territories.
I think also that it is important to realize that we do have to bite the bullet on devolution. I was the negotiator with the Gwich’in tribal council in 1995 on devolution. We were talking at that time about 51 per cent of the federal resources. We were talking about funding programs and services out of those dollars. And at that time the busiest industries that we had were Norman Wells, the Beaufort Sea, and oil and gas. That wasn’t even including the diamond resources that we have.
I heard a lot of people say that we should negotiate devolution for the sake of negotiating devolution. I think the last offer we got from the federal government — from Mr. Harper, who was up here a year ago — was pathetic. They offered us $20 million a year out of resource revenue sharing, wanting us to take over all the federal responsibilities for $20 million, and yet, right now, they're taking in over $200 million in royalties. That is the state of the federal offer, and I think it’s so pathetic that we should laugh it all the way to the bank.
It’s important to realize that we have to take advantage of the other tax responsibilities that we have control over. I know I've talked about the resource tax, mineral tax, whatever tax you want to call it. We as the Government of the Northwest Territories have those tax abilities right now. We don't have to negotiate with Ottawa. It’s important that we seriously look at that.
My questions earlier today were about trying to find jobs for people in the North, in part of the Northwest Territories, in the mining industry. We can't get the jobs, so let’s get the tax resources. You can keep the jobs; we'll take your taxes. We've got a choice. Sooner or later we have to have some tough love here and get on with making some tough decisions and making the industry realize that if they continue to make the profits that they're making and it’s not remaining in the Northwest Territories, or if it’s all flowing to Ottawa, we've got to do something quickly.
In regard to other infrastructure challenges that we're facing, there have been a lot of discussions around the Deh Cho Bridge. I, for one, support the concept of a P3 idea for bridges, highways and infrastructure that we need built in the Northwest Territories. We as government cannot continue to afford these mega-projects by way of the fiscal problems we're running into.
The only alternative we have is looking at how we can finance programs, and deliver this infrastructure, over 20 years, 30 years or whatnot, because we cannot pull $165 out of the budget right now. We can do it over 30 years or 20 years.
The same thing applies to the proposal that's been thrown out in regard to the Mackenzie Highway project and also connecting our communities. We have to find a way to connect our communities by way of infrastructure, connecting communities such as Tuktoyaktuk, Aklavik and other communities up and down the Mackenzie Valley where, right now, the only way in and out is either by flying or using the winter road connections that we have. We do, at some point, have to make that decision.
We as government have to look at how we can generate other revenues, such as hydro. Look at the possibility of mini-hydro for communities where hydro is at a very high cost. Communities that have the technology now, in regard to mini-hydro projects that are taking place elsewhere around the world.
Also, as government, we have the responsibility to take a fiscal look at what it’s costing us to maintain and operate communities. Someone touched on the idea of looking at a levelized rate system. The system we have in place is not economically viable; it’s not sustainable. At the end of the day, we as government will not be able to afford electrical power to communities if the major users of power
pull off our grid system — Northern stores, co-ops, hotels — and they basically go on their own system. We as the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, and the Government of the Northwest Territories, will be pickled.
We as a government have a responsibility to ensure that that we don't find ourselves in that situation. I believe we are going that way because of the new technology that's out there in regard to generating power. It’s a lot cheaper now to basically put your own generators in place, by way of micro-turbines and whatnot, than it was years ago. A lot of these companies that I mentioned are now selling fuel products by way of diesel fuel, gas and whatnot. All it takes is pulling a generator up to the back of the store, plugging it in, and they're off our system. The reality is we're either going to face it or end up paying more to maintain small communities on a system that can't afford to maintain the system right now.
Again, it’s important that we seriously take a close look at that, and also look at alternative ways of generating power.
In regard to the Mackenzie pipeline I have to agree about the subsidizing of big industry. Exxon Mobil, which made $40 billion, does not need the Government of the Northwest Territories to subsidize a pipeline. If anything we should re-visit that decision and make it clear to them that we will change that decision by way of what the real cost is going to be and the benefit to the people of the Northwest Territories for whatever resources and revenues that we can charge to this pipeline.
So with that, Mr. Chair, thank you very much.