Mr. Speaker, we’re all aware in this House of some of the pressures that have been on the resources and the capacity that we have to draft new legislation and get it enacted. I’d like to ask the Minister if all the consultation and everything has already happened that would allow this legislation to go forward and if it will be given priority status.

Mr.

Speaker, this has

been an ongoing issue for a number of years, highlighting the doctors and the lawyers. I believe Mrs. Groenewegen raised that issue on numerous occasions in the past. It has triggered our department and also Health and Social Services to draft up legislation on this particular issue. We are currently establishing a draft proposal to be submitted, and then we will be discussing that further. It is one of the priorities that our department is also working on with the department.

To the issue of this being given some kind of a priority here, we cannot afford to lose any more professionals out of our community. As I said, I believe that the lack of this legislation is something that has affected Hay River just this past week in a very detrimental way. What kind of time frame could we be looking at to have this legislation in place and approved in this House?

It is true that we need to move forward on this. We certainly don’t want to lose professionals to the south. We certainly want

to attract them and retain them here in the North. The draft legislation proposal will be forwarded for our review within the next month, so it is coming in a progression period.

Thank you, Mr.

Lafferty. Final

supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In keeping with what would be the normal turnaround time required for a piece of legislation like this, I'd like to ask the Minister: is there any way to fast-track this? If there is, when could we possibly see this legislation work concluded and this bill passed in the House?

Mr.

Speaker, we’ll do

what we can as a department to fast-track this particular piece of our proposal.

We will, as a department, continue to work with the Department of Health and Social Services and the other parties that are involved with drafting of the proposal. We’ll do what we can as a department to move it expeditiously. Mahsi.

The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Today I talked about an issue that hits home with many single mothers and fathers: the Core Need Income Threshold and the issue of being eligible for public housing. Today I have questions for the Minister Responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation. I’d like to ask the Minister: how often is a thorough review of the Core Need Income Threshold completed by the NWT Housing Corporation?

Thank you, Mr.

Beaulieu. The

honourable Minister Responsible for the Housing Corporation, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you,

Mr.

Speaker. The homeownership Core Need

Income Threshold is done on a two-year cycle. The rental Core Need Income Threshold, accepted by CMHC, is provided to the NWT Housing Corp every five years, in accordance with the Social Housing Agreement.

I’m interested in the Core Need Income Threshold for public housing. Did I hear correctly that the Minister said the numbers come from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, or is there other data that’s used to determine the Core Need Income Threshold?

My information is that it comes mainly through the CMHC. As well, we do

our own. In 2009 the Housing Corporation will be doing, as well, another housing survey to check on the number of core needs for just housing in general.

Can the Minister advise if the NWT Housing Corporation would look at a different way of determining Core Need Income Threshold? I can’t see how they could capture all community-assisted expenses if they’re using the Core Need Income Threshold handed down from the federal government.

Can the Minister advise if at some point the corporation would look at having all expenses to determine that core need income be community-specific?

The Member has raised a number of concerns in terms of housing policies, like with seniors and how that repair program is profiled. This is another issue. I’ll just make the commitment in the House that we’ll be willing and interested to sit down with committee to look at suggestions as we look at the broad policy review that’s underway currently in the Housing Corporation. As we move through this budget process, we will be moving right into the business planning process, so there’d be an opportunity to work with the committee to look at these very specific issues.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That’s good. I’m glad that the Minister’s prepared to sit down with committee.

I would like to ask the Minister if he could commit to looking into creating some sort of special status for single mothers and fathers, in their need, to determine a different type of CNIT — Core Need Income Threshold — when the calculations are done. So if the Minister could commit to looking at some sort of special status for this group of people.

As we engage in the process we just talked about with committee, in terms of the review and the issues and concerns in regard to the various policies that are currently there, those would be the types of things we would hope to be able to come to resolution on. So yes, we’re prepared to talk about that fully.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr.

Bromley. The

Hon. Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m aware they do work in a number of initiatives with the government. The simple fact is we also disagree with some of what they say in the Territories, this one being the case.

It’s good to know the Premier is aware of that contribution.

Does the Premier also realize that his press release totally ignored the point that the World Wildlife Fund was raising while simply focusing on writing off the World Wildlife Fund of Canada as a southern organization?

When you look at what we do as the Government of the Northwest Territories, we’re committed to a number of things: World Wildlife Fund, other groups from outside the territory. They may do some work in the territory, but they originate outside the territory.