This is page numbers 1621 – 1660 of the Hansard for the 17th Assembly, 3rd 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 communities.

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Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

The Member raises a good point. If I could point to the work done by the Porcupine Caribou Management Board where they, over a number of years, came to an agreement on the very issue and process that the Member has so astutely suggested as a way forward, which is to agree on numbers that are triggers to certain kinds of action. If they get low enough it triggers a ban. Once there’s an improvement to a certain number, it triggers certain specific conditions. If it gets healthy enough, then there are no specific harvest restrictions. What has precluded us from doing that is being able to work through with all the various co-management boards in the settled area and in the unsettled claims to come up with a management plan with those same kinds of triggers, and to do that you need, of course, your first solid baseline of information, in terms of your herd numbers, so you know where you’re starting from and what you’re going to need to go forward. The Member raises a point and we do have a model that, I believe, we should all be looking at and that’s the good work done by the folks managing the Porcupine caribou herd.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Robert Hawkins

Robert Hawkins Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to first thank the Minister for that lavish praise and, of course, if he wishes to further gild the lily with how great I am, I would be willing to accept it.

When can we expect these particular numbers before us so we can have them for good discussion? The outfitters are feeling left out.

Resident hunters are concerned. I support the return of full hunting for First Nation people, their opportunity.

The point is, when can we get the numbers out for discussion so we know what we’re working towards, because right now everyone’s in the dark and we want to be part of the solution while the government appears to be the problem.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

I’m more than willing to lavish praise where it’s due, with exception, possibly, of his work in progress of his Movember efforts. I know he will keep at it. He’s got a few days yet to fill in all the blanks.

In my statement I laid out a process, and we’re going to follow that through with the Wek’eezhii board and the unsettled claims areas and work through to lay out the management plan. We know it’s good for the current year. The broader issue of coming up with the same type of management plan that the Porcupine Caribou Management Board has developed, I think that is something that all the boards and settled claim areas and unsettled claim areas will be looking at because it is a good model to emulate.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let’s take a look at this glowing good work that the Minister refers to. My questions are for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. The summer of 2010, the Minister reports the Bluenose-East was at 100,000, at or near record numbers for this herd. The hunting seasons of 2010-2011, 2011-2012, 2012-2013 and now we’re talking about 2013-2014 are going by, have gone by, with no resident quotas. The Minister says these numbers give us an opportunity to open discussions. Well, they gave us that opportunity two years ago and now we’re talking four years of missed seasons. These numbers give us an opportunity to open discussions about an unrestricted Aboriginal harvest as well as the possibility of considering a limited resident harvest on this herd.

My first question is: When is resident harvest of any barren land caribou herd unrestricted for resident hunters?

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have, in the Northwest Territories, an agreed-to process for the management of wildlife in settled claims. That process is going to be involved with the Bluenose-East and involves the Tlicho, Sahtu and Inuvialuit, which are all public

boards. They are going to be working with the department and we’re going to be reviewing those numbers. We’re going to be looking at pressures and going through that process. They will come back to myself as Minister and to the department with their recommendations.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

The Minister refuses to answer. I will answer for you. Never. Resident hunters are never allowed unlimited harvest on barren land caribou. I’m not saying that’s good or bad, it’s simply the way it is. The season has been closed – that is zero harvest for resident hunters – for years now for all barren land caribou for resident hunters, except possibly the Porcupine. What has been the Aboriginal quota on the Bluenose-East caribou this year?

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

I apologize to the Member. I didn’t clearly understand the question. In terms of the unlimited resident harvest, the most that we’ve ever had, that I’m aware of, is five tags per resident hunter. The voluntary harvest that was in place for the Bluenose-East was in the neighbourhood of about 2,800 animals a year.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

I continue to make my point. Meanwhile, the Minister keeps the season closed for resident hunters while we’re at record numbers here with this herd. How, in this time of total caribou deprivation for resident hunter families, can the Minister restrict resident hunter quotas to zero for years and years?

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

In the Northwest Territories we have a process in terms of how we prioritize access to wildlife and caribou in this case that has its basis in the Constitution where we talk about the Aboriginal rights to harvest for Metis, Indian and Inuit people. We have a list. When there are restrictions, Aboriginal subsistence harvest gets protected and we work our way down from commercial harvest to resident harvest, and then the last to be protected at all costs is the Aboriginal subsistence harvest. That is the basis that we have made all our decisions on, and that is what guides us in our decision-making process throughout the Northwest Territories.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.

Bob Bromley

Bob Bromley Weledeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Gobbledy-gook. Why can the Minister not work management authorities now and get a resident quota in place for this season? Record numbers of caribou, unlimited Aboriginal harvest, how about 10 tags for resident hunters?

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Gobbledy-gook implies that it’s unintelligible and no one can understand what I’m saying. I think the Member can understand what I’m saying, he just doesn’t like it. So let me repeat the issue. We have a process in the Northwest Territories and across the land.

There has been pressures on the herds. There have been decisions made by the management boards that we have agreed with, that have put restrictions on almost every herd. Some of them there are total bans, way up north. On some they’ve, like the Bathurst, there was a requirement from myself as Minister three years ago to make a decision, which we did, because of the plummeting numbers. We’ve indicated that there’s enough good news here that we’re going to go forward through the processes that are there, in place in the Northwest Territories, to review those with an eye towards seeing if there is a sustainable harvest for Aboriginal hunters. As well, can we at the same time manage the herds to sustain a possible resident harvest? We are intent to look at that in specifically two areas, the two herds: the Bluenose-East and the Beverly-Ahiak herd.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to ask the Minister of Finance for some… Actually, I had a constituent that works for First Nations in my riding and that constituent actually came to Yellowknife and rented a hotel room, but wasn’t able to get a government rate. She had asked why we don’t get a First Nations rate.

I’d like to ask the Minister of Finance how the government gets a government rate at hotels here in the Northwest Territories or throughout Canada.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Miltenberger.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Minister of Finance

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is a process based on volume, large organizations, governments, corporations, traditionally go to airlines, in some cases they go to hotels, and they negotiate these types of rates that are accessible and a benefit to folks when they are travelling and in some cases with government, even when you’re just travelling on your own, if you’re an employee you can also use the fact that you’re a government employee. So that’s a negotiated arrangement with the different hotel chains and motel chains in some cases.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

I guess the point I was making and failed to say was the First Nations, thereby First Nations government in our Northwest Territories and throughout the Northwest Territories we, of course, respect our First Nations partners and governments. How can we work with the hotel associations or our government to ensure they are included and get a good corporate rate, because they’re flying into Yellowknife and travelling

throughout Canada, as well, to conduct their business just as we are.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Minister of Finance

I understand that in some cases the Aboriginal governments, the Dene Nation or other Aboriginal governments would negotiate their own rate, be it with airlines or with hotels where they are patrons on a steady basis, or in some cases, up north where they actually buy and own the hotels, they have that advantage. If the Member is suggesting that we somehow partner up, I’d be glad to get the information and review the issue with Finance and the Member to see what’s possible in terms of that kind of arrangement. I don’t know if there’s any kind of group rate that the First Nations or Aboriginal governments could be included in, but I’d be willing to commit to talk to Finance and the Member about that.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

I certainly look forward to that information. As well, some of our small communities, too, are technically a municipal government as well. Can he also look into that aspect of it as well?

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Minister of Finance

I’ll commit that we look at all levels of government: municipal, Aboriginal, as well as territorial.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

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

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask a few more questions of the Minister for Health and Social Services. I would like to follow up on some of my previous questions.

My first question was, we have established a territorial respite care plan, from what I understand, and I asked the Minister for an update, but now I’m asking when that plan is going to be rolled out.