This is page numbers 4577 - 4596 of the Hansard for the 16th Assembly, 5th Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was need.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Your final, short supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

David Ramsay

David Ramsay Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, like I said, as well, one thing I’ve learned over the years is that access to rough and having control of the rough trade means you have a captive audience. I’d like to ask the Minister, I think we should be pursuing with vigor and with aggression the possibility of the Government of the Northwest Territories, under some secretariat or scheme or however we can work that out, we take control of the 10 percent allocation of rough and we control that rough, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Minister if he could, again, pursue that with some aggression. Thank you.

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Certainly it’s very important to make sure that all of the rough allocation is taken up and utilized here in the Northwest Territories, and cut and polished here in the Northwest Territories. We are examining every option and it’s certainly something that we’ve got some very strong recommendations on. I look forward to when I can share the conclusions of our consultations with the Member and his committee. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today in the House I talked about the need for the NWT Housing Corporation to do repairs on seniors housing in Tu Nedhe. I have questions for the Minister of Housing.

Mr. Speaker, last year when I asked the Minister if there was a strategy to address communities with the high core need, his response was as soon as the need survey is done, we can look at something. The survey is complete now. I would like to ask the Minister what the plans are for addressing communities with the highest core need across the Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation, Mr. Robert McLeod.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the community needs survey will go a long way in determining the allocation for repairs. We are planning on directing a lot of money to the communities that are in highest need so we can address the core need issue. Thank you.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe

Now that the needs survey has been completed, I am going to ask questions on the survey. The Minister and the staff may not have had a full opportunity to review it, but I’ll still ask a question. I would like the Minister to tell me what plans are undertaken to address core need issues for seniors’ households. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

As I was saying before, the results from the core needs survey will determine how we allocate a lot of the money and if that includes allocating more money to seniors, then that’s the direction that we’d be willing to take. We do have a lot of programs in place for seniors and there is a fairly good uptake on it, but we are always looking at ways to improve our product. Thank you.

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe

Can the Minister tell me with the information gathered in the needs survey, if he’s able to determine the difference between core needs of seniors, singles, families and those different groups within the Northwest Territories? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

The report doesn’t necessarily break it down into seniors and homeownership and that, but in the research that was done, I’m sure that I would be able to get some numbers and share those with the Member. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

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

Tom Beaulieu

Tom Beaulieu Tu Nedhe

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Minister commit to directing his staff to deliver the maximum amount of repairs that can be issued with a promissory note where there is no need to encumber the land? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

There used to be a program in place where if you were on untenured land, you were eligible for up to $25,000. We changed that. You are eligible to up to $40,000 now. As Members are well aware, part of the criteria for accessing any of these programs is to have title to the land. So we are continuing to try to take steps to work with those that don’t have proper tenure to the land and there are a lot of other issues that we continuing to deal with. One of the first issues that we are always deal with when we do get calls, the first question we ask them is did you apply. Five times out of ten, the answer is no. We encourage folks out there to apply to their district office and not try to circumvent the whole process

by going directly to the MLAs or to the Minister. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to follow up on my Member’s statement and I believe it’s directed to the Minister responsible for the Energy Coordinating Committee on the review of the power rates. Much work has been done to date and I would like to ask the Minister to explain to me, to my constituents, the basis of the work that was done to date. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister responsible for the Energy Coordinating Committee, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our government has invested a lot of time and effort into looking at the high cost of power in the Northwest Territories, as well as the distribution and generation of power and also looking at alternative energy.

Starting with alternative energy, we’ve committed to spending $60 million over a period of three years to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. We are well into that process.

With regard to the electricity review, we appointed a panel of members that were experts in their field and they have undertaken a process of community hearings, meetings and so on, to look at the whole process that we use for setting electrical rates, for monitoring and control, for generating and transmitting of power. They submitted their report and have identified about 76 recommendations for the government to consider.

In addition to that, there was a review of the NWT Power Corporation. As well, there was a proposal with regard to ownership of the Power Corporation. The review of the NWT Power Corporation was submitted and the other proposal is being looked at by a committee of deputies, but it’s waiting until we, as a government, make some decisions on the electrical rate review. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

I know that the Minister could have gone on and on about trying to fulfil the work we’ve done in the last year on the electricity review. I guess the most important thing for me in my constituency, and many small communities, Mr. Speaker, is the assurance that all this work is leading to reducing the rates, thereby the cost of living in our smaller communities. How much of this work that was done, Mr. Speaker, confirms that it is possible to do it in the short term and for the benefit of all as well in the long term? Thank you.

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

I believe working with all Members of this Legislative Assembly, I am very optimistic that we can find ways to make changes that would result in benefits for the majority of the communities and no one community will be unduly impacted. As the review team identified in the report, the system is broken and we have to fix it and I really believe that we have to make changes if we are to go forward on a sustainable basis. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

As I had said the last few days, it’s our small businesses that own buildings that are really impacted by the high power rates. If we are looking at changes to the system, can the Minister explain how the impacts will be for the commercial rates, Mr. Speaker?

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Our objective is to reduce the power rates for commercial businesses so they can also, in turn, pass on these rates to help reduce the cost of living in communities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

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

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

I’d like to thank the Minister for his answer, Mr. Speaker, as well as passing on the savings to the customers. Are the planned rates commercial or residential? Are we still going to be looking at some type of territorial power support for the smaller communities?

Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The electricity review is a public document and recommended that we look at a three-rate system for power. The TPSP would apply to thermal communities. That was the recommendation. My expectation, subject to working with the committee or all Members of the Legislative Assembly, is that the TPSP would still apply to residential.