Sorry, Madam Chair, for the confusion. In regard to the prevention and promotion, as I indicated in the budget address, we’re going to be responding to the letters from the Social Programs committee and all the committees in terms of their requests and recommendations and we’re going to bring forward what we think will hopefully be an acceptable response.
The Deh Cho Bridge opening, it is important. The vast majority of the funds have been expended. We anticipate that this piece of infrastructure will be open before winter and that’s what we’re working towards.
The Inuvik-Tuk highway, as I have as well mentioned, we have made a number of commitments in this Assembly to Members that were as a result of questions raised and confirmation that the work’s being done. Once we get the detail we will report back to Committee and to the Legislature to have a discussion about what do the estimates prove up, what does the environmental and geotechnical work tell us, but most importantly the concern and focus on the projected cost of the road right now. We have a very low level, soft estimate and that number, there’s a whole range of numbers that are out there. We’re going to firm that up, and as the Minister of Transportation indicated, we will report back.
The borrowing limit, we have to be very judicious in how we use that. When you look at the amount of combined short-term and long-term borrowing, the number’s in the neighbourhood of $656 million. That leaves us roughly $150 million out of the $800 million. It’s not, as I’ve indicated, quite as generous as it seems and it doesn’t give us as much latitude as we would have liked if we would have been able to not have a limit. However, it’s what we have to work with, so we’re going to be very judicious in how we use that. We just have to recognize that $150 million when you look at all the projects, the $3 billion that we’re accumulating in infrastructure deficit, it’s a relatively modest amount of money to try to add to the mix. So we have to use it wisely.
The energy costs in Inuvik and Norman Wells, we’re committed to sorting out those issues. As I tried to indicate today as well, the issue in Inuvik is pressing because their gas wells could go dry at any time. We’re taking steps to make sure we’re prepared for that imminent eventuality. In Norman Wells we’re doing some work there. NTPC, however, has an ongoing period of grace from Esso so it’s not the same kind of pressure, so we’re putting our focus and resources into dealing with the most imminent demand, which is in Inuvik.
The Member also talked about concern about splitting up money and maybe the GNWT should get into the gas business. After we have devolution there may be an ability or there will be an ability to have that broader discussion as we have all the economic levers at our disposal that we don’t currently have. In the meantime we’re in a situation that we have to focus on getting to devolution and beyond and that’s our intent.
The Member’s comment about reporting measures is well taken. We are at work as a government to ensure first that every department has a strategic plan going forward with measurable outcomes and action implementation plans from which will flow into the business plans. We’ve also heard the concerns raised at the committee table about the need in the business plans for more measurables and more specifics. We have heard that concern.
In regard to devolution and decentralization, the Premier committed in this House today that the government is committed to decentralization and, in fact, we are looking as we speak as all the Ministers have been instructed to look within their current operations to see what may be a candidate for decentralization with devolution and even in spite of devolution. There is that commitment.
The Heritage Fund, it’s the issue of using, if we’re going to put money into it, we’re going to be putting borrowed money in and we’re committed as a government and I think as a Legislature, which is why we passed the bill, to make this a functioning and usable fund. The question is going to be one of timing over the next two to three years. Thank you.