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

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. David Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Member. That was a good statement that he had earlier.

Certainly, we need to be looking at what is happening in the Sahtu. I know I answered a number of questions today from Mr. Yakeleya regarding what is happening in the Sahtu. We need to look at opportunities. I mentioned to Mr. Yakeleya about the Economic Opportunities Strategy that is underway. I think it’s a good opportunity to put the concerns of the region of Nahendeh and the Sahtu on the table and see what we can do.

I know with Voisey’s Bay, I believe, it was after the mine was developed at Voisey’s Bay that ACOA had put a special economic zone in place at Voisey’s Bay. I don’t know if it was pre-development of that mine. I’d have to double check that.

Certainly, we’ve got a lot happening in the Sahtu, and I know the roads in the Member’s riding are being impacted and we really do need to pay special attention here. If there’s a way to develop the economy in both the Nahendeh and the Sahtu I think the most important thing is the agencies that

are there aren’t tripping over themselves. I think there’s a possibility that if you get too many people involved in it, that’s not a good thing either. I think it has to be focused and it has to be action oriented in order to get results. I think we will get there. It’s early days.

We missed, of course, a huge opportunity during NWT Days, because this is a new and emerging issue for us to advise that the Sahtu is having impact on the region and our Northwest Territories. Will the Minister of ITI develop this strategy so that we can work with the federal government and let them know that we will need their assistance in developing impact funding for this region? Just like they committed $500 million for the pipeline, this is special development that is happening and if we can work towards developing some kind of strategy to get impact funding from the federal government.

I guess I’m very well situated in that I am the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment and Minister of Transportation, and in the meetings we had with our federal counterparts in Ottawa, I, again, never miss an opportunity to let them know what is happening in the central Mackenzie, talk about it, talk about the need of a Mackenzie Valley all-weather road. Certainly, that is going to be front and centre.

We have a big project that we need to get construction started on. As soon as that is moved forward, our focus will certainly shift south to the central Mackenzie and we will take our best effort.

I mentioned earlier that we want to work with Regular Members on an approach with the federal government, and how we’re going to go about trying to work with industry and the federal government to get some more funding for the Mackenzie Valley Highway. We’ve had some success with CanNor. Thus far they’ve just recently given us a little bit more money to continue the momentum that we have there, so we’ll continue to work with CanNor and other partners on moving this whole thing forward.

Certainly, the other regions are getting their special projects, and it’s time now to use the momentum of the Sahtu play to develop the highways in the Nahendeh system and the Sahtu. Just with that focus, it’s not about taking away from other regions but about our government identifying that it is important, and to work with the federal government to identify a strategy for impact funding. Can the Minister work with his Cabinet colleagues to continue that momentum?

ITI certainly was working with the other departments. When you look at this year’s budget you’ll see a number of items in there specific to the Sahtu. That is a direct result of what is happening in the Sahtu.

The government has had to react and take action. Working with the other departments, we’ve identified areas where we need to be looking at putting more resources. We have done that.

I believe this is still relatively early days in the development of the Canol shale oil play. Those wells will be tested. If they have a commercial rate flow and get into production, that will change many, many things here in the Northwest Territories.

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

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Just to continue that momentum, if the ITI Minister will also work with his Cabinet colleagues that my riding of Nahendeh, Fort Simpson and Wrigley are being impacted, and that some resources will have to be identified for them as well.

As this all moves forward, I certainly look forward to working with the Member and the communities in Nahendeh to see how they’ve been impacted, and working with the government to try to find ways to get more resources there.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are also for the Minister of Health and Social Services. In the Mental Health and Addictions Action Plan: A Shared Path Towards Wellness, it states that the Department of Health and Social Services spends $9 million each year to support mental health and addictions, yet there are 11 service gaps that are presented.

I’d like to quote the Minister of Health and Social Services during the TLC, where he states, “When I speak to community health providers, there is a need for alcohol counselling, there is a need for treatment to be close to the people where the people live. We need to have those services at the community level and on the land where the people can work together in healing.” Yet this Minister sent the Minister’s Forum on the road at a cost of $300,000 and he didn’t feel that money could be spent better anywhere else.

My question to the Minister in that sense, some stuff that was laid out in the budget process, he did mention detox beds. Can I ask the Minister of Health and Social Services how many detox beds are there going to be in the Northwest Territories and where are they going to be located?

Thank you, Mr. Moses. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The determination of detox beds had come as a result of some questioning in the House here where we had determined that there are no detox beds available anywhere in the health care system. What that indicated then was that beds can be made available at the Stanton Hospital and the Beaufort-Delta hospital. What we will do is ensure that if somebody needs detox around those two centres, that detox beds can be made available to individuals for detoxification.

There are so many different areas from the budget address and what we’ve discussed in the past here, but the Minister did mention Yellowknife and Inuvik. With all the services that Yellowknife does have, even though it is a growing problem here in Yellowknife – and I appreciate that – I’d like to make a recommendation that we have one detox or two detox beds in the north and two in the south where we also have a lot of issues and concerns but don’t have the resources. Will the Minister commit to putting those detox beds, one or two detox beds in the north and one or two detox beds in the south? Will he commit to that?

I can commit to making beds available for detoxification, two in the North and two in the South.

It was really good news to hear that we did get the $1.15 million and the commitment, as well, into mental health and addictions, and it says that the money is going to be supported in the initiatives with the shared plan towards wellness. Was this $1.15 million allocated to this action plan in the initial budget before the budget dialogue process happened? Was that $1.15 million allocated in the initial budget?

In order to fully implement the action, the department would need, I think, $1.4 million ongoing for the three full years for the implementation of the action plan. Some of the action plan may indicate that we look at programs. Like the Member had indicated, we’re spending about $9 million in community counselling, residential treatment and so on. That could be part of the action plan as well, the programs that we currently have in place. But this is what we think we would need in order to fully implement the action plan for the next three years so that we actually complete the action plan.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do appreciate the challenges that we face. We do have an action plan here, and the action plan says we need action. How is he going to address this shortfall in funding so that we don’t continue to take care and treatment, rather that we can start making preventative measures sooner than later?

At the department we don’t think we have a shortfall in funding. We think that the action plan is something that would work within our current framework. The goals are to promote and understand awareness and acceptance for mental health. We focus on the person. We talk about improving availability and access to services, so the services that are available, we would try to make them more accessible to improve the efficiency of the services that we have in place. I think that’s going to save money, not cost us money. Some of those goals are what we’re looking at in this action plan.

As a department we are fairly comfortable that we’re moving forward with the money that we have and that there will be some results.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Member for Hay River North, Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Transportation. He has indicated that he had the opportunity to meet with the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure when he was in Ottawa last week. I’m just wondering if he was able to get any commitment on cost sharing of the Tuk to Inuvik highway, the 75/25 for the complete cost of that construction.