Mr. Speaker, one of the things I could have included in my list of reasons why the motion came forward on Friday was power rates. I have been hearing from a number of constituents, people who live in apartments, Mr. Speaker, are paying over $300 a month for power rates. When the latest increase to power rates came up and the GRA was approved, it was because oil was $140 a barrel. People could buy that. The interesting thing is, though, people were told because consumption was down. Now, consumption is down for a reason; it’s because people are putting in energy efficient appliances, they are changing their light bulbs, they are conserving energy, but I think the government, the Power Corporation and NUL should have been upfront with residents of the Northwest Territories that if you conserve power, you are going to pay more and that’s exactly what’s happened. It’s had a perverse effect, Mr. Speaker. The first question I have for the Minister responsible for the Power Corporation is when are residents going to get some relief from the high rates they are paying and now that oil is hovering around $40 a barrel? When are these rates going to be rolled back to give our residents some relief?
David Ramsay on Question 81-16(3): Relief From High Electrical Power Costs
In the Legislative Assembly on February 9th, 2009. See this statement in context.
Question 81-16(3): Relief From High Electrical Power Costs
Oral Questions
February 8th, 2009
See context to find out what was said next.