Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of

Transportation and it’s in regards to my Member’s statement. I received several calls at my office in Fort McPherson in regards to the closure of the Abraham Francis ferry on the Peel River this coming Saturday. People were raising the concern that there is no ice on the river, so why are we closing the ferry, there’s no visible threat to ferry operations. My assistant took some pictures, which I sent to the Minister’s office, showing him visually that you can actually see there is no…If anything, the river is wide open where the ferry is crossing. So I’d like to ask the Minister, is it possible to extend the season so that we can stick to a 72-hour notice or a 48-hour notice and move forward with the understanding that there’s no threat to operations? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Michael McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, I’m just wondering if we’re looking at the same picture. The Member did send a picture to my office and there was some water, but there was lots of ice on both sides of the channel. So I guess that I have to ensure that we’re looking at the same image that he’s talking about.

Mr. Speaker, he’s correct; there was a date set for closure. Notice has been given for Saturday. But there has been some consideration, since the weather has warmed up, and we expect that we can squeeze a few more days out of the operations there and we will do our best to continue operations. Mr. Speaker, we have to ensure that there are a number of things that are considered. Of course, ice is one thing, but safety for all the people travelling on our ferries always has to be number one. Those decisions are based on the captain’s discretion, along with our marine manager and our regional superintendent. So we’re going to do the best we can to ensure that the ferry runs a few more days and see how things are at that time. It would have to run on a very short closure notice basis. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I believe the decision was made here in Yellowknife and not in the community operations. If anything, they agreed that they can still operate. I would like to ask the Minister if it is possible to extend the season as long as possible so people are still able to move goods and services and the people back and forth, people working on the highway, people out at 8 Mile, so they are able to get back and forth across the river. But, more importantly, with the mild weather that we are receiving here in Yellowknife that we are probably going to see a short winter season this year, because of the mild weather that is out there. I wonder if it is possible to extend it so we can take advantage of the crossing, more power to it. I would like to request the Minister if he can

keep myself informed and maybe look at the possibility of a 72-hour notice and basically go forward. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, once again, we don’t tell our captains what to say when it comes to closure of the ferry services. It is the same as we can’t tell the captains of an airplane when they should fly. Mr. Speaker, that is against federal regulations. We will not interfere politically as to the operations. Weather permitting, ice conditions permitting and safety factors all considered, we will do our best.

Mr. Speaker, at the same time, this may be a very unusually warm winter with the climate change. That channel may stay open all winter. We don’t have the resources to operate all winter. We can confirm that we will do our best to operate, depending on all the factors that I mentioned, but I can’t confirm that we will do any more than that. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, again, if we put a bridge there, we wouldn’t have this problem. I think if the Minister put his emphasis on that, then we wouldn’t have to worry about the season, the rain. Again, this ferry operation is basically operated on the cable system. I believe the people that operate the ferry only have to have a Class 3 licence. You don’t need a Class 1. Again, it is a hydraulically operated ferry. There are no captains on this vessel. Again, it is a hydraulically operated system. I think that, if anything, we should do whatever we can to extend the season and make use of the operation. I know cost is a factor, but I think we are only talking a couple more weeks here. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that a bridge would solve all these issues, but that is a $70 million question that hasn’t been resolved yet. Actually this ferry has been operating longer now than it has in the last 10 years. So it is certainly an indicator that we are feeling the effects of climate change, but that could change overnight. Cold weather could set in. Again, we will look at all the conditions around operating this ferry and do our best to operate as long as we can and keep the Member informed of what we plan to do in terms of our actions. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday in my Member’s statement I was speaking about the H1N1 virus that is happening right now across the globe. Listening today on CBC Radio, I was listening to one of my elders from Ulukhaktok, a well-respected elder, Robert

Kuptana. I would like to ask the Minister today if she could clarify if there is a vaccine in the community of Ulukhaktok and what time they are going to start vaccinating the elders and the kids in the schools. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I could advise the Members that as soon as we got the shipments of vaccines, they were transported to Inuvik so that we are prepared to deal with all of the areas from Inuvik. From Inuvik, vaccines are being transported by hand by a nurse, because the vaccines are very temperature sensitive so they can’t be shipped on the plane. The temperatures have to be monitored. They are being distributed into health centres in many different ways, but they are handled by nurses. The action teams are going into communities. As well, visiting regularly scheduled nurses are going into health centres with the vaccines. Lastly, I could advise the Member that we have begun vaccinating in Ulukhaktok today. I cannot tell him what time or anything like that, but we are vaccinating in Ulukhaktok today. Vaccines are there today. Thank you.

That is good to hear. My elders in Ulukhaktok won’t have to worry so much about their grandchildren.

Mr. Speaker, in my Member’s statement yesterday, I spoke about the timelines for Tuk and Paulatuk and Sachs. I hope the Minister’s department is seeking to get the vaccine into the communities a lot sooner than within two weeks. That is what the dates in the community are saying. I would like to ask the Minister if she could make sure that the dates are moved up a lot quicker, hopefully by Monday. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the latest information we have is that Tuktoyaktuk, Paulatuk and Sachs Harbour will start vaccinating next week, starting Monday. Mr. Speaker, also I have to say that our health staff and the Territorial Emergency Response Committee have done a spectacular job. As of yesterday, we have vaccinated 7,445 people. This in comparison to 10,000 that Ontario was able to vaccinate in three days; so given the size, geography and challenges we have, I have to say kudos to the people who are involved in this. They are really stepping up to the plate. We are moving fast. We are moving quickly. Our plan was to have everybody who wants to be, vaccinated by November 21st . We are on schedule and I think

there is every possibility that we will be done even sooner than that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to thank the Minister and her department for working so fast in the southern part of the Territory. I see now it is moving ahead to the communities. I just would like to see

and make sure that the H1N1 for the communities, people are really scared and that their staff get out there and let them know that they are working on it to get everybody inoculated and to go on from there. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. I didn’t hear a question there. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had a few other questions for the Minister of Transportation as it pertains to the Government of the Northwest Territories future financial obligations to the Deh Cho Bridge project. The Minister had mentioned that our first payment, I believe, is due in January 2010. I just wanted to clarify with the Minister what that payment is going to be. Is it going to be $3.8 million? Mr. Speaker, that is the question that I have. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Michael McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, I believe I said the payment was due in December for $2.5 million.

I thought I heard January, but it could have been December. That would, from my knowledge, include $1.8 million and that is the cost of the ice road crossing there, and the ferry operations, and the $2 million that we can thank the last government for as a top-up on that payment. That is $3.8 million that the government is going to have to pay whether it is in January or December of next year some time. I would like to ask the Minister where that money is going to come from and if that is the correct amount, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the money I was referring to was the payment that was due to the lenders. We expect that we would probably be in the position to have to cover that portion of it and have a recovery plan through chargebacks of some sort. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the Minister what the government’s yearly payment is going to be to the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation for the Deh Cho Bridge once the construction has concluded. Is it going to remain at $3.8 million or does the Minister foresee it going higher than that? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the payment is going to be the subsidy that is going to be provided to the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation, $2 million and a portion of the operations that we currently operate right now through the ferry service and the ice bridge construction, minus the operation

of the toll that we are going to be holding back. We expect that to be around $300,000. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Mr. Speaker, I am just wondering if the Minister can give us an estimate. I know the $2 million and if you add that to the $1.8 million...I want some assurance from the government that it is going to be a certain amount. I don’t think it is something that we can just guess. I think we need to know what we’re getting ourselves into. Is it going to be the operation to the ice crossing and ferry operations at the time or is it going to be what we were told two years ago when the bridge was being talked about then? That was $1.8 million, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.