The prices in the small communities will not change until the next resupply. So a year from now, when we do the resupply, at that time hopefully there will be lower prices in place. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I’m kind of saddened to hear the short-sightedness of that response here. But I believe our government can do better for our small communities and look at a solution for the interim to help reduce those prices in the communities because it is just so shameful. They are sitting there while the rest of the world’s gas prices, and heating fuel for that matter, that effects cost of living and poverty in our small communities.

I’d like this government and Mr. Premier to seriously consider the effects of gasoline and heating fuel prices in the small communities for this coming year. Thank you.

The government already has a Petroleum Products Stabilization Fund and it has a maximum value of $1 million. This Petroleum Products Stabilization Fund is intended to temporarily compensate for differences between the purchased cost and the sale price of petroleum products. There is always a delay between the day when new fuel products are delivered to communities and the date when prices to customers are changed. So, we already have a Stabilization Fund. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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

Thank you very much. I know those are technical details that the Minister of Public Works and Services can certainly answer, but I’m asking, I know that the Stabilization Fund was used already and I’d like to ask Mr. Premier when can this government review that and also review a further reduction using this Stabilization Fund for this coming year, given that gasoline prices will continue to decline at this quarter. Mahsi.

Of course, we can always look at every situation, but generally the market determines the price and we pass the cost on to the consumer. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on my earlier statement today with questions I believe are probably most appropriately directed to the Minister of Finance on the P3 projects for the rebuild of Stanton Hospital that’s proposed, although there are certainly elements for Health, Public Works and Services, Human Resources and so on as well.

On September 30th the Union of Northern Workers

received an alert that eight maintenance services workers at Stanton Territorial Hospital may be laid off next summer. At the recent Stanton Hospital AGM on October 7th , Minister of Health and Social

Services gave what has been described as a confusing array of answers to questions posed. In particular, workers have heard that the timing of layoffs may be anywhere from June 2015, to once the project has been completed, to never.

My question is: Will the Minister provide the desired certainty to the workers and say what is the most likely time of layoff, given the government’s current schedule for this project? Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Minister of Finance, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There has been no final determination as to what is going to transpire or even if there is going to be any layoffs. There are some things being considered as part of the P3 process and what services and what requirements will be in the final agreed to RFP. So when we have that certainly, we will be sharing it with all affected parties as well as all the MLAs. Thank you.

Thanks for the response from the Minister. Members of the hospital medical staff describe the maintenance workers as critical components of the health care team.

Will the Minister give me his assurance that if the important functions performed by these long-term GNWT employees are to be lost from public service, the P3 contract will ensure that the provider must give these experienced employees an opportunity for continuation under the new employer with comparable compensation? Mahsi.

It’s a hypothetical situation posed by the Member, but we have very clear processes as an employer on how we deal with affected employees. We will use those procedures and policies to the full extent to ensure, should there be, if there is, maybe, that that eventuality occurs, we will ensure that every step is made to address the issues raised by the Member.

Thanks for that response. During the rebuild of Stanton Hospital when the hospital

basically becomes a construction site, it will be difficult to maintain the level of service that patients expect and require. The changeover period will be critical, and maintenance of the systems will be very challenging.

Will the Minister reassure the people of the North that the workers who know the physical plant and systems of the hospital best, those with up to 33 years’ experience maintaining the building and its functions, will be there to ensure their safety? Mahsi.

On a go forward basis, the Member is correct, when you do a renovation as opposed to a new build, there has to be these extra, very critical steps taken to protect the quality of the air, infection control and those types of things. I know this personally, as well, because we just went through that situation at the health centre in Fort Smith. It requires that extra special step which will be done. We will ensure that, of course, we will use all the resources available, including all the human resources available. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s unfair to the long-time and loyal maintenance services employees at Stanton to have the uncertainty of the timing of their layoffs and whether they will be laid off at all hanging over their heads. Indeed, they reported a destroyed workplace atmosphere compared to conditions before the critical government pronouncements, and we heard the many equivalencies here today from the Minister.

When is the Minister prepared to provide some certainty to these employees, given that this Minister sets the schedule here, so that they can make appropriate plans based on clear information about their future and so that a healthy and positive workplace atmosphere returns to Stanton maintenance services, something I know the Minister and all of us desire. Mahsi.

The key focus I think we have to keep our eye on is we are going to invest something in the neighbourhood of $350 million to do a major retrofit, expand the footprint and service capacity of the Stanton Hospital by about 40 percent and modernize it into the 21st Century. It’s a big operation. There is going to be more staff coming on board.

As we move forward with this process, we will continue to inform everybody. The CEO has already met with staff. The process is not finalized. The final agreement, contract, hasn’t been signed. As those issues become clear, we will sort them out.

We are very sensitive to the concerns raised by the Member and that is being considered as we move forward as well. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Following up on my Member’s statement that I made earlier, I will be asking the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment about some of those issues that arose with Aurora Campus.

Can the Minister let me know, and the people of the Beaufort-Delta and the Sahtu region, is there an action plan moving forward for the Aurora Campus, whether it’s a five-year or 10-year action plan, short term or long term? Can the Minister give us any indication if there’s an action plan and is it being implemented? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Moses. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. This is an area that Aurora College has been exploring, the Board of Governors, for some time now. They are currently in the process of developing a long-term plan, a five-year plan on how they can deal with the community deliverance of certain programming. So we are, as the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, also working very closely with the college as part of their overall goals and objectives of what kinds of programs will be delivered, whether it is Inuvik, Fort Smith or Yellowknife and the surrounding communities. So those are some areas we are continually monitoring and working very closely with the Board of Governors.

We want to have our input into the system, as well, because we are currently in the preliminary stages of Skills for Success, where we are identifying and doing a needs assessment for communities and delivering that part of programming into the communities. Mahsi.

It is a growing concern that has been happening over the last two to three years about the programs being delivered, enrolments dropping, and there’s a reason we have a low enrolment. It’s because we don’t have the programs.

With the programs that are being delivered at Aurora Campus at the moment, what is the campaign strategy that Aurora College is doing to try to get students not only from the Beaufort-Delta and Sahtu regions to that campus but from all the Northwest Territories and other jurisdictions possibly? What is the department doing to increase the awareness of the programs to try to increase

enrolment at the Aurora Campus? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

There is a wide range of marketing approaches happening within Aurora College. The Board of Governors is responsible for the three main campuses, including Inuvik. There are various programs delivered, whether it is trades and apprenticeship, education, health, arts, sciences and business. So we want to expand beyond that. There is the ALBE program as well.

As the Member alluded to, we need to attract more students into our programming. That is the ultimate target of the Board of Governors, and we as a department are responsible for training of those individuals. We have various federal programming, as well, and territorial programming which will be integrated into Aurora programming. Those are some areas we are tackling with the Board of Governors of the college. Mahsi.

I’m glad to hear that the Board of Governors is responsible for the programs and how they are delivered throughout the three campuses here in the Northwest Territories.

How is the Minister working with the Board of Governors? He is the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment in the Northwest Territories. How is he working with the Board of Governors to ensure that we have equally distributed programs in Yellowknife, Fort Smith and Inuvik? How is the Minister working with the Board of Governors to ensure we have equally distributed programs so that all regions can get the education that they deserve? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.