Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to take the opportunity today, as the lead Minister for the Reducing the Cost of Living Strategic Initiative Committee, to provide an update on the actions associated with this initiative.
The Reducing the Cost of Living Strategic Initiative is one of five strategic initiatives the government is investing in to advance the vision, goals and priorities we developed with all Members of the 16th Assembly. This initiative includes actions that address the reality of the high cost of living in the Northwest Territories.
There are a number of important issues that need to be addressed as a part of any strategy to fundamentally alter the cost structure of living in NWT communities. These issues include transportation costs, energy and utility costs, market development and competition for goods and services, employment and income levels, and the cost of government programs and associated tax issues.
In addition to addressing these longer term issues, the Government of the Northwest Territories also has a range of Income Security programs, like the Territorial Power Subsidy Program, Income Support, housing programs and the cost-of-living
tax credit, that all subsidize the cost of the living for our residents.
While issues around the economy and refocusing government are being considered by other initiative committees, the Reducing the Cost of Living Strategic Initiative Committee is focusing its action on energy and transportation costs and ensuring programs that subsidize the cost of living are as effective as possible. The actions planned under the Reducing the Cost of Living initiative include improving transportation access to communities, addressing factors that impact the cost of goods, improving shelter and supporting individuals and families.
Mr. Speaker, significant infrastructure investments are planned as part of the action to improve transportation access to communities and better connect them. Investments will be made for additions and improvements of winter roads, construction of various all-weather bridges, surface improvement of highways and improvements at airports. We all know that improving connections to communities is a costly endeavour, but our approach is to continue to improve our transportation infrastructure to the greatest extent we can.
High energy and utility costs impact the cost of living throughout the Northwest Territories. The government has many programs and initiatives designed to address high energy costs in both the short and long term. Enhancements to existing energy conservation and efficiency efforts and expanding the use of alternative energy sources such as wood pellets are some of the new investments proposed.
Plans are also in place to undertake a review of electricity rates, regulation and subsidy programs to ensure our system is efficient and that rate structures and subsidy programs reflect today’s realities and the high cost of living in our communities.
To ensure our communities are sustainable in the long term, a comprehensive hydro strategy is under development that includes continuing our work on community mini-hydro projects. Another key effort is the work underway to assess the opportunities for natural gas conversion in diesel communities once the Mackenzie Gas Project proceeds. The Reducing the Cost of Living committee is being supported in the energy area by the Ministerial Energy Coordinating Committee, which is leading the detailed analysis and discussion on energy issues.
Mr.
Speaker, the quality and cost of shelter
continues to be a problem in many communities. Some of the activities around utility costs and transportation will help address this issue, but other
activities are planned to continue to address housing issues in our communities. Future activities under this action will need to include housing strategies aimed at quality of housing. A combination of new construction and greatly enhanced maintenance and repair activities will address core need, expand homeownership repair assistance and alleviate some of the infrastructure deficit in public housing. These strategies will need to build on the recent Affordable Housing Initiative that has led to substantial new construction of housing in communities throughout the NWT.
Income Security programs are a cornerstone of the government’s support for individuals and families. These programs are designed to help people become self-reliant. Implementing the next steps in the new income security model is a significant component of the action of supporting individuals and families. These next steps include aligning the other income security programs, including public housing rental subsidies, with the new income security model and increasing support for case management to improve regional delivery of Income Security programs.
Mr. Speaker, while we call this initiative Reducing the Cost of Living, it is clear there are great challenges and no easy solutions to support our residents wherever they chose to live in our territory. Solutions that address the fundamental issues related to cost of living will take commitment and time. The actions we have planned, we believe, will help address the high cost of living in the Northwest Territories and contribute to achieving our goals and vision of strong individuals, families and communities in the Northwest Territories.