Good afternoon, colleagues. Welcome back to the Chamber. Orders of the day. Item 2, Ministers’ statements. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. This Assembly has a vision of strong individuals, families and communities sharing the benefits and responsibilities of a unified environmentally sustainable and prosperous Northwest Territories. We called our plan Northerners Working Together because we know that each of us has a part to play in helping us achieve that vision. Last year, with the support of Members, I engaged with residents all across the Territory to hear about their priorities and ideas for coming together to create a better future for all Northerners. I would like to take this opportunity to update Members on what I heard.

At the March 2010 meeting of the Northern Leaders’ Forum, it was agreed that each member of the Northern Leaders’ Forum would take the summer to engage with respective constituents and ask them about the kind of future they would like to see for the Northwest Territories. Following these engagement processes, members of the Northern Leaders’ Forum were to meet again to share their findings and determine whether any common themes emerged which could form the foundation for a vision for the Northwest Territories.

As Members are aware, my contribution to the work of the Northern Leaders’ Forum was to launch a territory-wide engagement process called “Creating our Future Together.” I spent the summer months reaching out to NWT residents to seek their views on what our Territory should look like in 20 to 30 years.

In addition, we partnered with NorthwesTel and the NWT Teachers’ Association to sponsor an essay contest encouraging high school students to

articulate their priorities for the future. When we come back as an Assembly in May, it is my intent to introduce the winner of this contest and have them as Premier for a day.

Our young people are an impressive group. They spoke with honesty and passion. It’s clear they care about the kind of future they’re going to inherit and they expect to play a part in shaping it.

I am pleased that many residents accepted the invitation to get engaged and involved. Residents I met with and/or heard from provided thoughtful input and innovative ideas about the kind of future they wished to see for the NWT. Later today, at the appropriate time, I will table a report and appendix summarizing this input.

One of the most encouraging but not necessarily surprising things that emerged is the fact that people generally share the same concerns and priorities and that these are many of the same priorities we identified as an Assembly.

Probably the most frequent point raised by residents and youth in particular is the need to strengthen educational opportunities for NWT residents and to better prepare youth for future success.

Residents also made it clear that they want a sustainable economy. Residents are united in wanting an economy that creates jobs and prosperity for our people today, but they expect it to yield social and economic benefits for the long term.

Closely linked to this theme, people are also committed to protecting the land and the environment. Residents value the land and the northern way of life. They want to see a future development successfully balanced with conservation. Many also talked about the need for the NWT to become more energy efficient and less dependent on fossil fuels.

A final theme that emerged from my engagement with residents involves governance. While there was a healthy diversity of views expressed about what needs to change, almost everyone we heard from wants to see devolution. They believe NWT residents should make decisions that affect our residents.

It has truly been an honour to listen to people from all walks of life share their views on a common future for all of us. I believe, from what I have heard to date, there is much common ground on which we can build our Territory.

All of the submissions by individuals and organizations, roundtable participants and input from youth have been summarized in the report I will be tabling later today.

I am pleased to advise that I’ve had the opportunity to present the results of the Creating Our Future Initiative to members of the Northern Leaders’ Forum at our January 24

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meeting. The Inuvialuit

Regional Corporation, the Northwest Territories Metis Nation and the Northwest Territories Association of Communities also tabled and presented the summary reports of their respective engagement processes. At our meeting, members of the Northern Leaders’ Forum agreed to continue the work of developing a vision. We will be meeting again in the near future and agreed to hold a conference in the spring to finalize the vision and roadmap for the NWT.

There is no better or more crucial time for northern governments and the people of the NWT to continue the discussion of developing a vision for our future. For too long decisions about our future have been made elsewhere. We need to seize the future. We cannot take a back seat any longer.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister responsible for Human Resources, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To deliver effective programs and services to the people of the Northwest Territories, the government requires a public service staffed by skilled employees. The goal in 20/20: A Brilliant North, the NWT Public Service Strategic Plan, is to provide effective human resource tools which allows managers to have the right people in the right jobs at the right time.

To further this goal, I am pleased to announce that by the end of March 2011 the final phases of e-Recruit, the government’s on-line electronic recruitment and staffing system, will be launched.

Implementation of e-Recruit is being carried out in three phases. Phase 1 started in January 2010, to allow individuals to view job ads and apply for jobs on-line. Immediate benefits saw a reduction in competition completion time and fewer paper-based processes.

Phases 2 and 3 of e-Recruit, currently being implemented, provide a powerful staffing and recruitment system for managers and human resource staff. Key features include the ability to:

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initiate staffing requests electronically;

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view resumes and screen applicants on-line;

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track the progress of competitions;

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schedule interviews with applicants on-line;

and

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generate recruitment statistics.

Mr. Speaker, e-Recruit moves the government from paper-based recruitment to an on-line electronic system that provides a streamlined and efficient staffing process.

I know Members are interested in greening initiatives and one of the more significant impacts of e-Recruit will be the move to paperless competition files. Staffing competition files are often two or three inches thick with paper. In the Yellowknife offices of management and recruitment services, paper is bought by the pallet load. As we move to paperless files it is anticipated there will be a reduction of approximately 80 to 100 boxes of paper used by the Department of Human Resources on a yearly basis. Eliminating paper files will also reduce printer cartridge use and the costs associated with both.

As Members of the 16

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Legislative Assembly, we

identified an effective and efficient government as one of our goals. Efficient recruitment enables us to have the right people in the right jobs at the right time. Our continued investment in improving the public service is an investment in our ability to provide quality programs and services to Northerners. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 3, Members’ statements. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On Monday there is going to be a referendum in Yellowknife on the Con Mine community energy system. I’ve talked with City officials to get a firm understanding of the project proposal and I want to share that information to help voters make a wise decision.

It’s important to be clear what the vote is or isn’t and what citizens are being asked to approve. This vote is not a final investment decision or a vote to go ahead with the project. Referendum approval would allow the City to talk to partners in a meaningful way. It would give the signal of serious intention private firms need before undertaking the expense of a detailed business plan assembly.

With the consent of the referendum, the City can proceed to finding a partner who will provide capital costs confirmation. With firm capital costs,

customer rates can be confirmed, and given confirmation that the project is viable, work can proceed on signing up customers. City officials tell me that then and only then would the City use the consent given under the referendum and assemble the funds needed to establish a new arm’s-length utility.

This is a cautious strategy and very risk adverse. It provides a number of off-ramps to back away before any capital construction decision is made based upon the hard numbers of the business case. After the system is constructed, building owners will hold the risk of fuel price fluctuation.

So why is the City making this project its business? Because the City wants Yellowknife’s future to be based on environmentally responsible energy price stability, with a secure future for stable, low-energy costs. City growth can be planned around a built-in economic advantage based on low carbon emissions. City planners are acting to reap the windfall of federal funds available now. And for taxpayers, energy sales could actually result in decrease of tax assessments thanks to the new revenue source. The City is offering voters a cautious next step towards a more secure, greener future. There will be lots more public scrutiny and lots of opportunity for hard questions.

I’m urging Yellowknifers to get out and vote on Monday, March 14

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, and let’s keep our options

open, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Enormous environmental benefits could accrue if the Con Mine community energy system goes ahead. On carbon emissions reductions alone the project is a huge winner. The project will displace Yellowknife’s fuel oil consumption by seven million litres a year, providing a 17,000 tonne reduction in greenhouse gases. That’s the equivalent of taking half the vehicles in Yellowknife off the road. It also cancels the emissions from thousands of fuel haul trucks.

Emissions from buildings connected to the system, the largest buildings in the city, will drop by 95 percent. Geothermal energy can heat this city for as long as there is a Yellowknife. Cheap distributed heat is an economic incentive to build a compact community with energy-efficient densities for walking, commuters, a green community for people.

Then there is the project’s biomass element. I have spoken of my Nordic country observations, where such demand fuelled big economic opportunities for local, small scale biomass enterprises. With a major stable customer base like this and the investment

security it provides, expect a cascading benefit as a sustainable low-carbon economy is realized right here in the North.

One recent letter in support of this project asked us to imagine a Yellowknife family in 2015 buying a townhouse, working downtown, sending their kids to nearby schools. Those kids could grow up 100 percent carbon neutral, their power from Snare Hydro and their heat from the Con Mine community energy system. Even their tap water would be preheated using mine energy.

While Con gold mine is closed, we are still sitting on a gold mine. Emission-free energy savings from continually renewing energy offers strong competitive advantage to Yellowknife which will pay dividends for the foreseeable future. We have a limited time offer of $14 million federal to help us seize this opportunity. The green category of the project gives us access to federal funds other cities can only envy.

People are frequently discouraged in confronting the immense challenge of turning back climate change. It is natural to say I am just one person, the task is so huge, what can I do? Mr. Speaker, they can vote in favour of the Con Mine community energy system. People are being given the chance to vote in favour of a green future. I am marking my calendar to vote yes on March 14

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and I am hoping

Yellowknifers will too. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Over the last couple of weeks I have raised issues in regards to the Joe Greenland Centre, the closure of the long-term care side of the facility. Mr. Speaker, I am still getting calls from a lot of the residents of Aklavik and especially concerns of their loved ones, and more importantly, the elders, and also what is going to happen to them.

Mr. Speaker, I think it is important as government that we relay the message that there is a transition taking place, but more importantly, what is going to change.

Mr. Speaker, we have to improve the quality of life for our seniors no matter where they live, identify specialized programs to allow more independent services to meet the needs of our elders and the aging population. Those would include personal care, use of handicapped devices and finding the supports they need in regards to ensuring the seniors can live a long time yet in their home communities by being provided the physical and

mental services that other people receive in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, we also have to ensure that we do have programs in the communities like respite care, having the caregivers utilize these programs and services in our communities ensuring that we utilize all government programs and services throughout the Northwest Territories regardless if it is Meals on Wheels or ensuring that we have home support services for those elders who need the assistance regardless of their disability, their age or their mobility, to be able to take advantage of different programs and services ensuring that they are independent and that the safety and health of the individuals are taken care of.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that the government has to do more to ensure that we are offering programs and services to communities such as Aklavik in light of the closure of the long-term care facility in the Joe Greenland Centre. I would like to give some assurance in the government with a motion passed here in the House, and what type of investments are we going to make as a government to ensure that those elders in the Joe Greenland Centre who basically have been relocated or have to be relocated will continue to be given supports in their home communities.

Mr. Speaker, at the appropriate time I will have questions for the Minister of Health and Social Services on where the government is going on this matter. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. One of the goals of the Sahtu region has to look at the financial stability that will stimulate the Sahtu economy in our region and develop the resources. Mr. Speaker, I had a chance to look at the negotiated contracts that the government produces every year and I looked over them for the last three years. These documents tell a very sad story, Mr. Speaker. We need to do better in my region.

For example, in 2009-2010, I see a $23 million negotiated contract with a local firm in Fort Smith to renovate the health centre. I also saw a $6.8 million negotiated contract for Tuktoyaktuk. In my region, I see a negotiated contract for $900,000. Compared to other regions, Mr. Speaker, we’re talking peanuts here.

It’s even worse in the year before, Mr. Speaker. A negotiated contract was awarded for the Beaufort-Delta for $11 million for transportation work. There are more than five to six million dollars of negotiated contracts for other Aboriginal companies

in Monfwi and Nahendeh ridings. I see no issue with this, Mr. Speaker...(inaudible)...

Mr. Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can I start over again?

The light went off just shortly before you quit talking, I think. So if you want to start back from one paragraph back, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There were five to six million dollars negotiated contracts with other Aboriginal companies in the Monfwi and Nahendeh ridings. I see no issue with this if it benefits local people, Mr. Speaker, but there must be fairness. If it can be done in the other regions, surely it can be done in mine, and again, in the Sahtu, one little negotiated contract for $200,000 was awarded.

Mr. Speaker, there is a long-term trend to this. In 2008 this government negotiated a $28 million contract here in Yellowknife. Surely some other companies would have loved to have bid on that work, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to remind the government that employment in my region is epidemic and I don’t see much to strengthen or to stabilize our economy.

Mr. Speaker, in our land claim, economic benefits was our goal in our settlement. I’d like to remind the government of this too. I’d also like to remind the government of the first goal of the Negotiated Contracts Policy: benefits for business or residents, which could not be reasonably expected to achieve through competitive contracting.

I’ll ask the Premier later, Mr. Speaker, on questions regarding the Negotiated Contracts Policy.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to say yes I “con,” I “con” support the City of Yellowknife district energy system.

---Laughter

I “con” vote yes on referendum day, next Monday, and I will vote yes. I support the City’s Geothermal District Energy System Project and I’m excited by the concept of a district energy system, and I’m excited by the long-term benefits that will accrue to both the city and its residents.

Like many city homeowners, when I first heard the details of the project, I heard that it would supply heat to 39 downtown buildings. I wondered what was in it for me. Would there be a benefit to me as a single-family homeowner? Would my taxes go up because of the $49 million loan? Could I expect the price of oil to go up in the future because of this

project? The answers are yes, I will benefit; no, my taxes won’t go up; and no, the price of oil won’t increase.

In the short term, homeowners will benefit through revenues from heat energy sales, which will go to the City because it will be a major shareholder in the district energy company. In the long term, the company will expand to possibly provide heat to all residents of Yellowknife. It might take 30 or 50 years, but eventually we can be off all the oil as a heat energy source.

Any loan taken out by the City for this project will be an expense of the energy company, separate from City expenses and will be paid off through the energy company, not through our taxes. In fact, we may even see a reduction in our taxes because of this new revenue source for the City.

You’ve heard about other aspects of this project from other Members. I’ve focused on the impact that it will have on individual city residents. For me the benefits far outweigh the negatives. I know more work is needed before this project can go ahead. A yes vote on Monday will allow for that work, the necessary research and study, which will determine if the project should proceed. A no vote stops everything right now, before the study and the evaluation of the viability of the project has been completed and it wastes the man hours and the money spent to date.

I will be voting yes on Monday for two reasons: because it addresses the long-term sustainability of my home community and because I “con.” I urge all Yellowknifers to get out to the polls on Monday and do the same.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

I rise once again to implore this government to hear the needs of the community of Trout Lake who wish to see a stand-alone school. Trout Lake is one of the many growing communities in the NWT. Younger families have been moving back and there are more children in the community. Also, technically the previous Charles Tetcho School was never replaced. Our government promised to replace it but it was never done.

The school is presently housed in the community recreation centre. Actually, government has some planned renovations to this facility this summer to accommodate the needs of the teachers and students from learning in a one-room school. This is great, but in the long term not good enough.

The Louie Norwegian School in Jean Marie River is a good example and probably not that costly a solution for a school that Trout Lake is looking for. The chief, counsellors, elders and staff always look to the future. They know that the youth are their future and want to ensure the very best for them. They also point out that our government’s priorities are to take care of our youth and to have the best education. All they are asking for is for us to follow our own priorities.

All the big schools are almost completed. It’s time to take care of our small communities like Trout Lake. The Minister of Education, Culture and Employment must recognize the needs of the community and assure a budget for the new school is in the next capital planning process.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Members of this House are aware, the NWT has had a payroll tax in place since 1993, before I became a Member. It happened before my time.

The tax was originally brought in because so many non-resident workers were flying in and out of the Territory on a regular basis and benefitting from our job opportunities, government programs and services, and public infrastructure without contributing to our tax base. A tax credit was brought in at the same time to partially offset the payroll tax for NWT resident workers.

In 2005 the payroll tax increased from 1 percent to 2 percent. At the same time changes were made to the cost of living tax credits. The combined effect of these measures is that NWT residents now pay 2 percent payroll tax on any net income from employment over $66,000.

The cost of living continues to rise. We are still coming out of a global recession and even middle and higher income workers are struggling. These workers already pay higher rates of income tax for their higher earnings. Why should they have to pay another 2 percent on top of this? Not only that, Northerners who make just as much or more money from non-employment sources such as investments or business income get the tax credit but are not subject to the payroll tax at all. Where is the fairness in penalizing employees over other NWT residents? What message are we sending?

While I am supportive of the payroll tax as a way of getting at least some revenue from fly-in/fly-out workers who benefit from our roads, hospitals and high-paying jobs without paying our income tax, I am concerned about the impact it is having on employees who live here and have to cope with our

higher cost of housing, fuel, food and other basic necessities.

For NWT residents the GNWT should get off our backs and axe the tax.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The problem with water and sewer infrastructure at Northland Trailer Park continues to be a serious problem. For the past two weeks many of its residents are still trying to cope without water and sewer. These residents undeniably are in a difficult situation and immediate action needs to happen to save our homes. To date the discussion around financial responsibilities continues to overshadow or overtake the problems of health and safety concerns of the 259 families that are at serious risk of losing everything.

As such, the GNWT needs to rise to the occasion and help these families by being more of a supportive friend of encouragement and actually putting money on the table. As is typical with these types of problems, while the three levels of government talk about what to do and who should pay, what is actually happening is these 259 families wait while the ground crumbles beneath them.

Without any doubt, I believe our government has a role here and this is why:

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when considering in California when the

landslides destroyed families homes, the state stepped in to help the people;

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when in B.C. the fires burned down people’s homes, the province stepped to the plate;

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in Manitoba when the Red River, true to form, rose and created floods, the province had a role; and

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when in Aklavik, the great community flood of 2006, the river predictably rose and $3.6 million rightly found its way to helping that community.

Now I’m sure the government has an interesting interpretation on what constitutes disaster assistance programs, but even in the communities across our great country when water supply becomes a problem, even INAC has been known to step in and rise to the occasion to help them.

I can’t give you the interpretation of this government’s definition of what “vital services” are, however, I can assure you that 259 families will say water and sewer, in their view, is a vital service to

them. For illustration purposes only, the definition of “vital services” in Section 33(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act is: a vital service includes heat, fuel, electricity, gas, hot and cold water and any other public utility. So rather than contemplating the issue about roles and responsibility or even looking for loopholes, what about putting people first for a change?

Finally, this concern is not just about money, but if it is, and the GNWT is worried about how to get it back, then caveat all the properties. It’s time to act, not talk. I ask this government not to confuse the right thing to do with rules and responsibilities as justification to do very little in this serious case.

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

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Today I would like to talk about contaminated sites in Tu Nedhe. As we are all aware, there is a lot of resource activity in the Tu Nedhe riding. In fact, all the diamond mines and many other exploration activities currently underway are in Tu Nedhe. In addition, there are many sites within the community boundaries that must be cleaned up by various GNWT departments as soon as possible. Also, there are sites inside and outside the communities that must be cleaned up by the federal government.

The people of Lutselk’e and Fort Resolution want all the contaminated sites cleaned up using as much local labour as possible. There are 25 to 30 contaminated sites in and around the communities of Lutselk’e and Fort Resolution and I’d like to see the government tell me what the plan is moving forward.

As I’ve mentioned numerous times in this House, the small communities need work. The contractors in the small communities need contracts and the land around the communities must be remediated to an acceptable standard.

This government must begin working with the federal government so that a plan to address the contaminated sites is put to work. One of the areas I see the two governments working together on is in the area covered by the Interim Resource Management Agreement. This government must work closely with the federal government to increase funding in the Interim Resource Management Agreement so the money can have some real impacts in Tu Nedhe.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last summer the federal government announced changes to the Food Mail Program for Canada’s North, basically to subsidize the cost of transporting food through Canada Post. The new plan is to subsidize retailers directly. We all hope the new program will finally reduce the cost of healthy food in our remote communities and improve the variety of food available. The new subsidy applies to such foods as milk, fruit, vegetables and bread. Just yesterday the Indian and Northern Affairs Minister said it will continue to subsidize some other goods such as toilet paper. He said the retailers were saying that changes to the program were happening too quickly.

The Food Mail Program is the biggest subsidy program in the North. Given the terribly high prices of basic foods in the communities, it is important that the federal government get this one right. It must help our residents, not just the retailers and freight companies. When a small bag of salad costs $10 and a litre of milk costs $18, we have to wonder who this is benefitting.

I’m glad the federal government is making changes based on the feedback it’s getting from the North, but it makes me think that the changes were not well thought out in the first place. Maybe the federal government needs some help. The new Food Mail Program is replacing Nutrition North. This is transparent and reliable. The consumers must be able to see where the subsidy goes. It must bring down the prices of staple foods for our residents. Healthy eating and living are priorities of this government and crucial to the health of our people. I encourage the government to work with the federal government to improve the new Food Subsidy Program.

I will have questions for the Premier at the appropriate time.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure today to recognize one of the Pages who’s been working with us I think over the last six weeks off and on. Aimee Yurris is a constituent of Frame Lake and I’d like to thank Aimee for her work off and on over the last six weeks. I’d like to congratulate all the Pages for the work that they’ve done. They’ve done a great job.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure to recognize Dr. Nicole Redvers, a naturopathic doctor and constituent of Kam Lake. I’ll be having an acknowledgement for her later on today.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Like my colleague Ms. Bisaro, I’d like to recognize the hard work of all our Pages that have been helping us here for the past six weeks, but specifically I’d also like to make special note of two Sir John students who are residents of Yellowknife Centre; that is Theresa Johnson and Karol Manning. Thank you for your hard work and we appreciate the work you do.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to thank the two Pages we had up from Sachs Harbour this week working with us here in the House: Shelby Lucas and Ms. Leigha Keogak.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. Robert McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to use this time to acknowledge Mr. Stephen Pretty, employee of the NWT Housing Corporation who is going to be leaving us soon and moving back to Newfoundland. Good luck to you, Stephen, and welcome.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 6, acknowledgements. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge Dr. Nicole Redvers, naturopathic doctor. Nicole was born in Hay River, Northwest Territories, and raised in Fort Resolution and in Hay River. She graduated from Diamond Jenness Secondary School in 2000.

Ms. Redvers graduated from the University of Lethbridge where she completed a Bachelor of Science Degree with premedical requirements in 2004. She attended the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Canada’s premier institute for education and research in naturopathic medicine, one of seven accredited schools in North America.

Currently she is a member in good standing with the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors as well as the College of Naturopathic Physicians of British Columbia, where she is licensed.

Mr. Speaker, I’d like to acknowledge the very great accomplishments of Dr. Nicole Redvers, naturopathic doctor. It’s so nice to see a homegrown talent like Dr. Redvers come home to the Northwest Territories to practice. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Every year a grandmother, mother and sister or an auntie is nominated for the efforts and dedication as a role model and demonstrated wisdom amongst their community and people around them. This award is recognized as the Wise Women Award, which is distributed by the Status of Women Council. I am proud to acknowledge Ms. Allison Dejong from Tulita for her hard work and excellent performance as the wise woman for the Sahtu region.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, I raised the issue of the payroll tax on the request of a constituent. The payroll tax has been a thorn in the side of Northerners for a long time now. I’d like to ask the Minister of Finance what precipitated, what made the government think it would be a good idea to raise it from already what was bad enough at 1 percent to 2 percent. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister responsible for Finance, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Member herself gave a fairly good history in her Member’s statement about the payroll tax, why it was implemented, why it was raised, as she ended her statement with the cry to axe the tax and get off the back of the people of the Northwest Territories. The Member did a very good job of that herself. Thank you.

Let me ask myself another question now.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, the payroll tax, the rationale for it was understood when it was put in place in 1993 in that we had a lot of people that were beginning to work in the Northwest Territories who did not reside here. I know the federal government doesn’t want to hear us say this because there’s supposed to be free access and mobility within Canada. They don’t want to hear us say that we did it to tax fly-in/fly-out workers, but that was the rationale for it. As I said, with the rebates that were in place at the time under our tax system it was somewhat bearable, but once it went to 2 percent and the tax credits did not affect the people in the higher income bracket it became burdensome and now with the costs of living... We talk about cost of living all this time in this House…

Do you have a question, Mrs. Groenewegen?

It’s coming, yes. Sorry. I’d like to ask the Minister, can we revert to the 1 percent tax and what would that cost this government. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we just this past Friday gave third reading and assent to the budget for this coming year so we are set, but as we plan for the end of this Assembly and we look at our transition items, I would suggest to the Member that that would possibly be an issue to consider and for inclusion in the transition document, recognizing that while people may find taxes burdensome, they are also the fuel that allows government to work and deliver the very many programs that people expect of it. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the Minister suggests that this is something that could be noted in a transitional document to the 17

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Assembly. Is

this something that the Program Review Office could take a look at to see if there is some other source of this much revenue that we do not have to take from our residents? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I would be glad to put that issue on the table for our next meeting with the program review folks. Thank you.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. As I indicated in my Member’s statement, once again I’m fighting with government to get a new school in Trout Lake. I’d like to ask the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment when can we begin the planning process for inclusion into a capital plan for a school for Trout Lake. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Every year we go through this capital planning process and this year, again, we will be planning for next year’s capital project. Those types of discussion will be considered in due time. Mahsi.

I’m very pleased with the Minister’s answer that it will be considered. Every year I’ve been asking to put it in the capital plan, Mr. Speaker. I’d just like to ask the Minister again, will he recognize the needs of the students and the community of Trout Lake and put a new school for Trout Lake in the capital planning process or at least a plan to scope out a new school for Trout Lake, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much.

Mr. Speaker, those types of discussion need to take place from the community, the DEC we need to work with, and highlighting which are the priorities for the region and also the priorities for the Government of the Northwest Territories. We are providing capital project funding to include in the 2010-2011 capital plan that was initiated and that will cover the technical upgrades as identified so it can provide more teaching spaces. Those are just some of the programs, the funding that we’ve identified, but definitely this is a discussion that we need to have at the school board level.

Absolutely. I always believe that communication is key and as long as we’re talking, we can identify this priority for the community. Inuvik has a $100 million school, Tulita about a $60 million school, but I don’t think Trout Lake is asking for millions of dollars, Mr. Speaker. They’re looking at a small size, like the size of Jean Marie River. I’m sure it will be even under a million to create something like that for the community of Trout Lake and that’s what I’m asking the Minister to look at. Thank you very much.

Mr. Speaker, we have to look at all areas of the planning process. We are talking about 16 students in the community of Trout Lake; we have the capacity in the facility for 33 students. Those are the discussions that we need to have with the superintendents, the DECs. Mr. Speaker, capital planning will be up and coming before us and those are the discussions that we will definitely have. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Your final, short supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Minister how can the community of Trout Lake be more helpful. Does he need petitions? Does he need letters from the chief and council even to come over and to meet with him directly as well there, Mr. Speaker? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the committee of representatives at the DEC level, those types of discussions, concerns or ideas are brought forward at that level and those discussions are shared with me as the Minister responsible for Education through our chairs meeting. We talk about the priorities of the community and also the communities of the regions.

Mr. Speaker, this is an area that has been brought forward. We talked about the space inadequacy. Mr. Speaker, I will be visiting the Nahendeh area and I am looking forward to meeting the teachers and also the facility as well. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are directed to the Minister of Health and Social Services in regard to improving the quality of health services to our seniors, and more importantly, providing them more independent service and also meeting their needs in regard to our aging population.

Mr. Speaker, my question is in regard to the situation we’re running into in Aklavik with the closure of the long-term care program at Joe Greenland. People are concerned about what’s going to happen to the elders that have moved out of there. What’s going to happen to the remaining elders in the community? There are some 39 elders over the age of 70. What is the Minister’s department doing to ensure the residents of Aklavik that the elders that are in the community will be taken care of and there are programs and services that are going to be offered? Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to update the House that the transition in the elders program for Aklavik is going well. We have hired an extra home support worker who will begin on April 1

st

. We are in the process of going

through the competition process for the third home care worker. This will triple the coverage of home care workers for elders in Aklavik. We plan on extending hours of home care support to include weekends and evenings. We will continue to deliver an elders day program out of Joe Greenland Centre.

Mr. Speaker, I can also advise you that there was a public meeting held with elders on February 22

nd

.

Approximately 30 elders attended the meeting. They had a lot to tell us about what kinds of things

they would like to happen; Meals on Wheels, they wanted more vehicle service. They like the fact that we are going to have more home care workers. We are working with the community to transition. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the concerns are more coming from the family members who have had residents in the Joe Greenland Centre who are now being asked to either move out or be taken care of in a home setting. Those individuals, the reason they were in the Joe Greenland Centre is because they need that specialized care. What are we doing in regards to the area such as respite care and ensuring that those people with disabilities, either visual disabilities or physical disabilities, are going to be taken care of in the community of Aklavik and ensuring that the health care side of this program will continue?

Mr. Speaker, we see that by changing the use of the Joe Greenland Centre we will be able to increase the assisted living space there in partnership with the Housing Corporation. We are going to be going from eight to 15 beds in that facility. We are aware that there are elders and persons with disabilities who are on a wait list to move into the Joe Greenland Centre. From the Department of Health and Social Services’ perspective, our expanded coverage of home care will be able to provide better service at the Joe Greenland Centre for the existing residents as well as the new residents that will move in there. Mr. Speaker, those who are in need of assistance will be able to get it at the Joe Greenland Centre. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, in regards to any type of transition or change of a program, residents do have problems trying to adapt to it. Can the Minister give me some assurance that her department will continue to work closely with the family members in the communities, the elders in the communities and the community leadership to basically work through this transitional period and basically have an open dialogue and try to have as much openness as we can so that people are aware that this transition is happening but include them in the discussions that are taking place? Can I get that commitment from the Minister?

Mr. Speaker, absolutely. We are committed to working with elders and community leaders and the MLA to make sure that we work together and work well in this transition.

I am very happy to hear about the community meeting that they had where the elders were able to come out and have a discussion. They asked for access to more home care support workers. They would like to see Meals on Wheels. They talked about the possibility of either going to the Joe Greenland Centre to eat or have food brought to them. They were very interested in having

recreational programs and other programs to bring the elders together that would also connect with the youth. We are very positive and we are very excited by hearing from elders about what sort of support they would like to have. We understand that the transition and change is always difficult. We will continue to communicate with the community. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, I would like to thank the Minister and department. Again, I have to encourage her that we do have to go back to the public. I know we had a public meeting in Aklavik. We had over 100 people in attendance. Can we basically host another public meeting, say in mid-April, to ensure the transition has taken place smoothly and we basically continue the dialogue with our community with the Minister and myself? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. There have been a number of questions posed to the Minister over the past couple of weeks in regard to naturopathic medicine and the licensing of that practice in the Northwest Territories. I would like to continue on that vein, Mr. Speaker.

I would like to begin by asking the Minister -- she has been hard to get a commitment out of, but I am going to try again today to get a commitment out of her -- can the Minister provide Members of this House with any correspondence she sent back to inquiries she or her department has had regarding the licensing of naturopathic medicine in the Northwest Territories? Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I had an inquiry about this issue. I have asked my staff to meet with people in question. The meeting was held. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wasn’t sure if I heard her say the meeting was held or wasn’t held, but would the Minister commit to sitting down face to face with her officials, the deputy minister, with the naturopathic doctors to move their concerns forward? Will she commit to that? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t have a problem meeting with anybody who wants to meet with me, but I want to assure the public and the Members here that we respond to inquiries that we get from the public and this specific issue in question, we have responded. I have asked staff to meet to explain what the rules are and what the government has in place in terms of the work that we are doing to regulate some of the professions. We have been open and communicating. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, what response is the Minister referring to, when it was sent and who it was sent to and when this meeting supposedly took place? I would like to ask the Minister those questions. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t know exactly what he is asking. Mr. Speaker, with respect to the naturopath issue, I received correspondence last fall. I asked the staff to meet with the person so that we could explain what the situation is with naturopath practice. Also, there was a concern that there might be a misuse of the word “doctor,” given that our Medical Profession Act states that it prohibits use of that word where there might be some misunderstanding that some people may be practicing medicine. I am just saying this because that is what the Medical Profession Act says.

There were meetings held in December. Our staff, the director of policy of the department met with the person in question to give them information. They had agreed to continue to communicate on this issue. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Whether or not somebody can be called a doctor, that is not the question that I asked the Minister. I am not sure why she had to say that again.

Anyway, getting back to the question about correspondence back to the naturopathic doctors who have inquired about licensing in the Northwest Territories, I’d like to ask the Minister, has the Minister signed any letter going back to the

naturopathic doctors in terms of licensing in the Northwest Territories. If she hasn’t, when will she? Thank you.

Thank you. I can tell you right now he’s not going to like this answer, but perhaps he might understand if I tell him that I can’t necessarily write to everybody who writes to my office. There are some people who write to my office that has to do with operational and administrative issues. When it has to do with the regulating practice, often on many issues I write personally to all the MLAs that write to me, I respond to constituents, but there are issues where it’s operational and it is within my responsibility to assign staff to meet with them. So in this situation I assigned the staff to meet with her and that meeting took place in December, whereby she was given technical background about the state of affairs, which I believe was the right thing to do. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today my Member’s statement was on the high price of the Food Mail Program and the high cost of food in the communities. It is a huge problem. Mr. Speaker, my question today is for the Premier. Will the Premier work with the federal government to help ensure that the food mail subsidies are visible to the consumers of the Northwest Territories and effective in bringing down the food prices in the remote communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The food mail issue has indeed been raised here a number of times in past sessions and during this session. We worked and supported the work of many groups in the North to have that program reviewed by the federal government. It’s our understanding, through Minister Lee’s office, that they are going to delay implementation of the new program for a year, is my understanding. Thank you.

Thank you. Will the Premier contact the advisory board with the federal program to help him improve the Food Subsidy Program in regard to the costing and showing the prices right in the stores? Thank you.

Thank you. From our understanding, the review has been done. They were working to implement the new program that would see retailers dealing with the subsidy instead of through Canada Post and what we were informed was it’s October 2012 that they will implement this revised Food Mail Program and we

will, of course, correspond with the appropriate authorities in this area around that implementation and delays on that. Thank you.

Thank you. Once it’s given to the retailers, we have to have something in place that’s going to police them in regard to the pricing and making sure the subsidy is getting to the people, especially in the small communities because it’s the highest cost of food in the Northwest Territories.

What else can the government do directly to help bring down the price of basic foods in the remote communities? Thank you.

Thank you. The area of the Food Mail Program, again, as a government department we’ve handled it through a number of departments in the past. At this point, through Minister Lee’s office she has the charge of working with the groups on this and any information or concerns that people have, or Members have on that and communities, we can pool that together and through her office make the connection and raise those concerns. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Your final, short supplementary, Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is a good program, the Food Mail Program. The federal government is trying to help people in the small, remote communities and I have nothing but good to say about the program. Will the Premier commit today to working with the federal government in making sure that this program helps all fly-in communities in the Northwest Territories to make sure that the cost is being passed on to the people? Thank you.

Thank you. There are a number of other communities as well that benefit from the Food Mail Program. Of course, we will look at the implementation of this program and ensure that the appropriate people benefit from this program, and many times it’s been raised in here that it’s the cost of food in the communities that needs to be affected. We’ve shared those concerns in the past and we’ll, again, follow up with more communications in that area. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Premier and I’d like to follow up with him on some questions that I asked last week in regard to the Auditor General’s report on the Deh Cho Bridge.

We’ve received a lot of information since last week and I am not asking questions to point fingers and

assign blame at this point; I’m trying to clarify a couple of things, which I don’t believe I got answers to last week.

In February of 2008, the government changed regulations to provide what is a standard indemnity for the bridge project lenders and a by-product of that was the removal of the requirement to provide notice of that change to Members. There was a 14-day notice period, apparently. I’d like to ask the Premier again, why were Members not advised, even if we had to be advised after the fact, that this regulation change had occurred. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The indemnification that occurred is a normal part of business and part of that is the requirement to notify Members 14 days in advance, I think is the crux of the matter here, but that is a normal part of the process. There wasn’t an extra decision to not provide that. So it was just a part of normal process and through our many briefings to committee, Members were aware that this indemnification occurred. Thank you.

Thanks to the Premier. I am not suggesting that this was not a standard indemnity. I think I mentioned that in my preamble. My concern is that there was obviously in the regulations an indication that notice was required and by changing the regulations and waiving the advanced notice that’s fine, but communication has been a problem in the four years or three and a half years since I’ve been here and I would have thought the Premier would have considered that communication of such a change to Members was a good thing.

I’d like to know, again, from the Premier, when the Financial Administration Act was changed in 1998, there was apparently, according to Hansard, quite a discussion about the need to provide this 14-day advance notice. So I’d like to know from the Premier, knowing that the notice was in there, knowing that this advance notice was important to Members, why did he not consider that we ought to be advised. Thank you.

Thank you. Again, there is no requirement through indemnities for providing Members that. The Members are getting hooked up on... I believe there’s a requirement over the $500,000 figure, 14 days’ notice that’s honoured. In the requirement for indemnities, that process has been followed. There wasn’t a change in regulation to make it, so that process was excluded. Thank you.

Thank you. I don’t believe I have yet today indicated that I think anything was circumvented. I’m trying to get from the Premier what the rationale was to not advise us. Yes, I understand that the notice period was waived, but

was there not some consideration that maybe we might want to know about that? The Premier advised last week that the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure was advised of these changes, and I believe I asked last week if I could see copies of the presentations that have been made to committee. I didn’t hear an answer. I’d like to ask him again if he would commit to get me that documentation from February or March -- I’m not sure -- of 2008. Thank you.

Thank you. As I believe I said, but I will confirm, that in fact when we responded to the standing committee it was a request to Executive to do an overview of this process on the Deh Cho Bridge Project and that was provided to committee and we’ll send it again. In there it referenced the fact that the Financial Administration Act was under review to look at these types of issues as future governments would look towards these types of projects or indemnifications.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Premier for that commitment. I will look forward to receiving that document. I’d like to ask the Premier, he’s referenced that the Financial Administration Act has been under review. I know that I think there’s consideration for changes to the act coming up. I’d like to know from the Premier, considering that this is an issue for Members at least on this side of the House in terms of notification, is this an issue that the Premier would consider might be something that should be discussed between Regular Members and Cabinet in terms of a Caucus protocol to deal with this kind of communication?

Again, in our many communications -- and we have quite a number of letters that have gone back to committee -- this has been raised. This has been committed to look at through the Financial Administration Act. I think that question is mute. We have in fact been looking towards dealing with this subject matter.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement and reading the Negotiated Contracts Policy I again found some startling numbers to indicate the type of negotiated contracts that are happening in other regions versus my region of the Sahtu. I want to ask the Premier on some of the explanation as to why some of the contracts seem more favourable in some of the other regions versus the region that I represent.

What are some of the things that take into... I know it’s very complex and that sometimes there are different scenarios for each case, so I want to ask the Premier in terms of the bigger contracts that I’ve indicated in my Member’s statement that were awarded through this process here.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Negotiated Contracts Policy is one that we do use throughout the Northwest Territories, as the Member highlighted. We have a number of other tools that we use, as well, and it was referenced in this House about the memorandums of understanding with a number of the Aboriginal groups around contracting, and negotiated contracts falls in that to help meet some of those targets. Some of the work that we need to do in those areas and in reference to the Sahtu is to get a better understanding of the businesses that would qualify.

I must say that, for example in the Department of Public Works and Services, just in the Sahtu in 2010-2011 to date, 84 percent of those contracts, the value of those contracts, have gone to Sahtu-based contractors.

Certainly I agree with the principles of the Negotiated Contracts Policy. Actually it’s a pretty good piece of work. I want to ask, to help out more in the Sahtu in terms of having this government do a workshop with the regional superintendents -- they’re the ones that sort of implement the policy, they’re the ones that take care of the policies -- to look at the policy of negotiated contracts with themselves and see how they can help the Sahtu businesses. I certainly think DPW has done a good job in terms of awarding the 84 percent of the contracts to the Sahtu businesses. This is awarded, I’m talking about specifically negotiated contracts.